Home ice, away ice — it doesn’t seem to matter for the Panthers, who are now 5-0 against the Oilers this year and one victory away from their first Stanley Cup in franchise history.
Edmonton threw the kitchen sink at them in Game 3, reclaiming control in all-situation scoring chances and leading in shots on goal, 35-23.
Connor McDavid accounted for five of those and now averages 4.66 shots per game in the Stanley Cup Final.
He came out buzzing in the Game 3 desperation with a scoring chance off the opening faceoff and ended the game with a total of 38, according to Natural Stat Trick.
When push came to shove, McDavid assisted two third period goals at five-on-five play in the Oilers’ comeback effort.
McDavid also totaled 25:14, a higher duration than any other forward in the game.
He has clocked above 25 minutes in every contest of this series, leading to a longer average than any of the three previous as Chris Knoblauch is squeezing his best weapon for all he’s worth.
In the only other two elimination games the Oilers have played this postseason, McDavid may have only aggregated three shots, but he averaged 23.5 attempts.
None of this comes as a surprise considering the context.
With not only elimination on the line again Saturday night, but a potential sweep to boot, it’s all hands on deck for the game’s most prolific talent.
