Leon Draisaitl delivers brutally honest assessment of Oilers' back-to-back Stanley Cup Finals losses to Panthers

NHL: Stanley Cup Final-Florida Panthers at Edmonton Oilers - Source: Imagn
Leon Draisaitl reflects on Oilers' Stanley Cup final loss to Panthers (Source: Imagn)

The Edmonton Oilers lost 5-1 to the Florida Panthers in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final on Tuesday. Sam Reinhart scored four out of five goals in the game. Sergei Bobrovsky made 28 saves, and Matthew Tkachuk also scored to help the Panthers seal their second straight title.

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The Oilers lost to the Panthers at the same stage in seven games last year.

Leon Draisaitl said the defeats were hard to swallow. When asked what he would remember about this team, Draisaitl said:

“We battled, but we're not leaving here as winners.”

When asked if it hurt more the second time, Draisaitl replied:

“Always hurts. Yeah, I don't know. It's not more or less. It's just the same.
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“The takeaway is that we didn't win. Nobody cares. So, good, try again next year.”
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Draisaitl scored 52 goals and provided 54 assists in the regular season. He topped the points charts in the playoffs with 33 (11 goals and 22 assists), tied with teammate Connor McDavid.

Connor McDavid credits Panthers for the win

Oilers captain Connor McDavid cut a disappointed figure after the defeat. He said the team struggled to handle Florida’s pressure and could not find a way to respond.

"Obviously, their forecheck was great. They tilted the rink," McDavid said on Tuesday, via CBS Sports. "They were able to kind of stay on top of us all over the place, (and we were) never really able to generate any momentum up the ice... Credit to them, (as) they played well."
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McDavid also praised Florida’s depth, with as many as six Panthers players amassing 20 points in the playoffs.

McDavid went pointless in Game 6 and had just two points in the last four games.

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Edited by Brad Taningco
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