Florida Panthers crowned NHL champions after victory over Edmonton Oilers

The Florida Panthers continue to reign supreme in the NHL. On Tuesday, they were crowned champions by a 4-2 victory over the Edmonton Oilers at home (5-1), for the second year in a row and the second time in their history. The Panthers were also playing in their third consecutive final. In 2023, they were defeated by Las Vegas. Florida thus matches the performance of its neighbor, the Tampa Bay Lightning, who won two consecutive titles, in 2020 and 2021.

The star of Game 6 was forward Sam Reinhart, who scored four goals on his own. He is the first player to score four goals in a Finals game since the legendary Maurice Richard of the Montreal Canadiens in 1957. Reinhart opened the scoring five minutes into the game. Then, late in the first period, Matthew Tkachuk helped the Miami franchise extend their lead.

Reinhart then scored in the final minutes of the second period and twice into an empty net in the third. Vasily Podkolzin scored the Oilers' lone goal with five minutes left in the game. Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky made 28 saves. Edmonton goaltender Stuart Skinner made 20 saves, but once again, he was involved in some of the opposing goals, as he had been in previous games of the final.

" This title is as good as the first one," said Sam Reinhart. "We learned our lessons. We stayed the course, kept our foot on the pedal, and the result speaks for itself. " Sam Bennett, another Florida forward, who scored 15 goals in the playoffs - in which the Florida Panthers eliminated Tampa Bay in five matches, Toronto in seven , Carolina in five and Edmonton in six - was voted MVP of the playoffs.

Reinhart, Tkachuk, Bobrovsky, Bennett, but also captain Aleksander Barkov and Carter Verhaeghe form the core of this fine generation of Panthers, under the guidance of coach Paul Maurice. Defenseman Nate Schmidt, recruited last year, Seth Jones, also a defenseman and arrived mid-season from Chicago, and especially Brad Marchand, Boston's star forward, also recruited mid-year and author of six goals in the final, also contributed to the title win.

" It's incredible ," said Marchand, who previously won the title with Boston in 2011. "It's an indescribable feeling. Seeing the family, everyone who supported me and helped me get here. I can't express how great it is. This group is incredible. " During that final, the Florida Panthers led more than any other team in NHL history, for 255 minutes and 49 seconds.

In Game 1 of the final, Miami lost to the Oilers in overtime (4-3) and then won the following game in the same way (5-4) . At home, the Panthers then won a clear victory (6-1) but were surprised (5-4 aet) after having led 3-0. Finally, they won again clearly (5-2) before concluding on Tuesday.

For the Edmonton Oilers, the disappointment is great. They lost in the final for the second year in a row. Last year, they lost in seven games, after coming close to a feat: beaten in the first three games, they won three straight games but lost in the seventh and final game. Connor McDavid, the Oilers and NHL star, is still waiting for his first title since turning pro in 2015.

" We lost to a really good team ," he said. "But nobody gave up, nobody gave up. Florida is a hell of a team. They won the Stanley Cup back-to-back for a reason. " Edmonton hasn't been a champion since 1990. And Canada has been waiting for a title since 1993. Where ice hockey triumphs is in sunny Florida.