NHL 2023/24 play-offs, Stanley Cup Final, Game 3 on Friday, June 14, 2024
Leon Draisaitl has skipped the 2024 Ice Hockey World Championship to focus on the Stanley Cup with his franchise.
However, it would be all the more annoying for the Cologne native if he were to fail in the final of all places and thus just before the finish line. However, the Floridians have also defended excellently so far …
That’s another reason why I’m trusting in my Oilers Panthers betting tip that the visitors’ strong defense will give the Canadiens little room to develop, especially in the first period.
On the other side of the North American border, towards Canada, desperation is high, especially in the Edmonton area. Because the offensively strong Oilers just can’t seem to break through the Panthers’ defense.
In two consecutive games against Florida, the Oilers scored just one goal in back-to-back defeats of 3-0 and 4-1, failing to score 50 times against strong goalie Bobrovsky.
It’s interesting to note that while 32 shots were fired at the Russian in Game 1, the Panthers’ defense only allowed 19 more in Game 2. This shows that the goalie is shielded by a first-class defense
For any third bets in Game 3, I’d like to point out that the Oilers might not get more chances to score until after the 40th minute. This could happen when Florida’s strength starts to wane again …
The Panthers only allowed four shots on goal at 5-on-5 in the 1st period and a total of only six in the first two periods. And even when the Oilers finally found their game in the 3rd period, they only created one top-class chance.
That was also their only big chance in all of Game 2, as they didn’t record a single 100 percent chance in the first two periods
The final face-off also showed why the Panthers should have been favored in the betting markets before the Stanley Cup Final even started. They have significantly better roster depth than the Oilers.
Evan Rodrigue’s two-goal performance in Game 2 brings him to three goals in the first two games of the Finals. That inevitably makes him a candidate for a possible goal bet next Friday.
Meanwhile, his teammate Niko Mikkola scored a typical goal for a goal scorer: a one-timer off a drop pass from Anton Lundell to tie the game at 1-1.
Kevin Stenlund may not have collected a point yesterday, but he won 73.3 percent of his faceoffs, some of them in extremely important situations.
Stenlund, along with Mikkola and Rodrigues, is another perfect example of the many second-line Panthers players who have made the difference in this series so far!
Up to this point, however, the Oilers’ third and fourth lines have not been able to make a significant contribution.
On the contrary, some of them have even been downright liabilities. Cody Ceci, for example, made room for Vincent Desharnais in Game 2 because he didn’t see any land in the opener.
Warren Foegele, on the other hand, took himself out of the game to a certain extent by making an unnecessary check on Eetu Luostarainen, which led to a five-minute penalty and a sending-off.
Adam Henrique, the Oilers’ most important trade deadline signing, has also yet to make his mark.
Added to this is the fact that when the Floridians successfully take the Canadiens’ two best players out of the game, they also render their opponents largely harmless.
After being a threat in the first game, Connor McDavid was almost completely kept under control the day before yesterday.
And how many times did we hear Leon Draisaitl’s name in Game 2? He had a few chances here and there in power play situations, but other than that, he barely stood out!
A major factor in the Panthers winning their first Stanley Cup could be that they’ve successfully prevented the Oilers from using their best tool to score goals: Powerplay!
So far, the Floridians have successfully killed off all seven of the Oilers’ power plays in the first two games.
But Edmonton has also stepped up a gear in terms of penalty killing. After FLA generated 14 shot attempts and six shots on goal on the power play in the first game, they held the Oilers to just six shot attempts and one shot on goal yesterday.
This all paves the way for a possible under-goal bet, which I’ll define in a bit.
Personally, I won’t budge an inch from my Panthers Oilers tip, which I already successfully submitted in Game 2.
As in Game 1 and Game 2, I don’t expect more than 5.5 goals to be scored this time either. The odds traded at Bet365 in this context would already be sufficient for a promising hockey bet on the Stanley Cup final
Conclusion: The Panthers’ defense is excellent and with a bit of luck they could have opened the final period in Game 2 with a spotless record.
As a result, I’m sticking to my focus on “under bets”, although this time I’m going to be a little more subtle and focus specifically on the opening period.
Since Edmonton has also gotten a better grip on the Floridians’ power play, I wouldn’t be surprised if the first goals of the game won’t be scored until after the first intermission on Friday …
Anyway, my Oilers Panthers tip is: Under 1.5 goals in the 1st period
