Perry Nelson-USA TODAY Sports/Sipa USA – Photo by Icon Sport
Edmonton Oilers vs Florida Panthers: Stanley Cup Finals Game 1
The Edmonton Oilers and the Florida Panthers are starting the Stanley Cup series on Saturday at Amerant Bank Arena.
The Oilers beat the odds to reach the final
The Edmonton Oilers finished the regular season in fifth place in the Western Conference, but not many are surprised to see them in the Stanley Cup finals. They started their playoff journey with a win over the Los Angeles Kings in five sets. They faced a huge challenge in the second round, coming back from a 3-2 deficit to beat the Vancouver Canucks in seven games. In the Western Conference finals, the Oilers defeated the Dallas Stars in six games. Connor McDavid leads the team with 31 points in the playoffs, followed by Leon Drainsaitl with 28.
The Panthers are back in the finals
The Florida Panthers finished the regular season in third place in the Eastern Conference. In the first round of the playoffs, they defeated the state rival Tampa Bay Lightning in five games. The Boston Bruins were next in line, and the Panthers moved on in six games. In the Eastern Conference finals, the Panthers defeated the New York Rangers, also in six games. Matthew Tkachuk leads the team with 19 points in the playoffs, followed by Aleksander Barkov and Carter Verhaeghe with 17 points each.
Betting Trends
Florida is 15-5 SU in their last 20 games overall and 11-3 SU in their last 14 home games. They have played under the total goal line in 8 of their last 9 games overall, 7 of their last 9 games against teams from the Pacific Division, and 4 of their last 5 games played on Saturday. The Oilers are 6-2 SU in their last 8 games overall, 12-2 SU in their last 14 games against the Panthers, and 8-4 SU in their last 12 games against teams from the Atlantic Division. Edmonton has played under the total goal line in 5 of their last 7 games overall and the last 5 road games.
Prediction and Conclusion
Both the Edmonton Oilers and the Florida Panthers are coming off wins in the conference finals against the top-seeds in their respective conferences. Last year, the Panthers lost in the final to the Vegas Golden Knights, while the Oilers are back in the Stanley Cup finals for the first time since 2006. The opening game of the series may set the tone for the rest of the series, and from this perspective, it can go either way. Given the style of play of both teams and their recent head-to-head games, we are going with over 5.5 goals in Game 1.
