The Edmonton Oilers are making their long-awaited return to the Stanley Cup Final.
Edmonton hasn’t reached the Final since 2006 when they went on a miracle run before ultimately falling to the Carolina Hurricanes.
Before that, they made five Stanley Cup Finals (1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1990) and won all of them. That run featured Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier leading the charge. Now, over 30 years later, it’s Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl who hope to follow in their footsteps.
The Oilers will face the Florida Panthers after they dispatched the top-seeded New York Rangers in the Eastern Conference Finals. Neither team has significant Cup experience, as the Panthers have only made two Cup Finals in their franchise history. However, one of those came last season, so many of the Florida players have been here before.
During his Tuesday press conference, Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch riffed on what he thinks experience in the Stanley Cup Final means to potential success. Unfortunately, if you’re a Buffalo Bills fan, your team caught a stray.
“You can ask the Buffalo Bills how important Super Bowl experience is.”
Kris Knoblauch on the Panthers reaching the #StanleyCup Final for the second straight year. pic.twitter.com/UUib2APsFj
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) June 4, 2024
“Is that an edge you guys have to overcome? And how do you do that quickly?” a reporter asked Knoblauch regarding the Panthers’ trip to the Final last year.
“Yeah, experience is good. I don’t know how much experience is beneficial. You can ask the Buffalo Bills how important Super Bowl experience is,” Knoblauch said. “I think the biggest thing is having the confidence to play. When our guys are playing their best, they should have confidence.”
The Bills’ Super Bowl follies in the 1990s have been well documented and the team still hasn’t gotten that elusive Lombardi Trophy. Until then, Bills fans remain ever-vigilant for the next cheap shot in their direction.
