NHL DFS Picks for the Stanley Cup Final: Panthers @ Oilers – Game 1

The Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers are in similar positions as the two teams face off in the Stanley Cup Final for the second consecutive year. It is the first repeat matchup since the Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings matched up in 2008-09.

Both teams are on hot streaks after hitting bumps earlier in the postseason. Edmonton has won 12 of its last 14 games after starting these playoffs down 2-0 to the Los Angeles Kings in the first round. Florida trailed the Toronto Maple Leafs 2-0 in their second-round series before going on a run that has seen them win 8-of-10 games to become just the fourth team to three-peat as conference champions since 1980. 

After a thrilling seven-game series last year and two high-octane regular season matchups, these two are back in the spotlight again. Can Edmonton pick up its first Stanley Cup title since 1990? Will Florida become just the second repeat champion this century? 

Let’s break down each team’s postseason while previewing tonight’s Game 1 matchup and our Panthers @ Oilers NHL pick.

Florida Panthers Postseason Recap

After a middling 98-point regular season that featured a ho-hum third-place finish in the Atlantic Division, the Panthers have done what has become the norm by scorching their way through the Eastern Conference. The team handled Tampa Bay, survived Toronto and ran roughshod over Carolina to reach the Stanley Cup Final again. The team’s unmatched forward depth has been on display again this postseason for a Panthers team averaging nearly four goals a contest.

Sam Bennett leads the NHL with 10 postseason goals. His 16 playoff points are second to Aleksander Barkov’s 17. Anton Lundell is tied with Edmonton’s Jake Walman, with an NHL-leading +12 in the playoffs, with recently acquired Brad Marchand (14 playoff points) right behind at +11. Two-time All-Star and Vezina Trophy winner Sergei Bobrovsky has been scintillating in goal. Playing every postseason minute for the Panthers, Bobrovsky has posted a 2.11 goals against average and a .912 save percentage. He has been even more stingy lately, posting a 1.51 GAA and .938 save percentage in his last eight postseason starts. 

Florida has scored 66 goals this postseason, and the Panthers tallied 10 goals – coming from eight different players – in two wins over the Oilers in the regular season.

Edmonton Oilers Postseason Recap

Edmonton is again appointment viewing in these playoffs, with its awe-inspiring offense complemented by an underrated defense. Connor McDavid again leads the NHL in postseason points (26), which has been aided by an NHL-leading 20 assists. Edmonton came back to knock off the Kings in six games in the first round before dispatching Vegas and Dallas in five games each in the next two rounds. 

In addition to McDavid, Leon Draisatl is second in the NHL with 25 points, including 7 goals, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is not far behind with 18 points. Evan Bouchard has been the standard-bearer for defensemen all postseason, tallying 17 points to lead the position while leading the team’s fearsome power play unit. 

Panthers @ Oilers Game 1 Picks

This Stanley Cup Final pits strength against strength. An Oilers side that has made Rogers Center a fortress at home in the postseason, going 6-1 there, against a Panthers squad that is very comfortable silencing crowds on the road, going 8-2 outside of Sunrise, Florida.

Florida defeated Edmonton, 6-5 and 4-3 during the regular season, and both teams are going to have to display both otherworldly skills and yeoman-like effort to hoist the cup when all is said and done. For Game 1, McDavid is primed to record two or more points, something he has done eight times this postseason, as the Oilers look to get off on the right foot at home.  

Our Pick: Connor McDavid to Record 2+ Points