Stanley Cup Final live blog, Oilers at Panthers Game 6

Welcome to Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final. The Panthers won the best-of-7 series 4-2 to caputre their second straight Stanley Cup championship.

NHL.com Editor-in-Chief Bill Price was at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Florida to provide all the sights, sounds and highlights in NHL.com’s Stanley Cup Final live blog.

10:48 p.m. ET

Well, that's it.

The Stanley Cup stays in South Florida for at least another season, the Panthers becoming the first team to repeat since the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2020 and 2021.

They are the first team to win the Cup on home ice two seasons in a row since the Oilers did it last in the 1980s.

It's remarkable how GM Bill Zito and coach Paul Maurice have shaped this team into a near dynasty. Someone better call Pat Riley because the word 3-peat will be floating around next season in the NHL.

The media are heading to the ice to interview the champs, so I gotta head downstairs.

Thanks for reading along tonight and the entire Final. It was a blast.

Be sure to check out our NHL Draft Live blog next Friday night.

10:41 p.m. ET

Do I hear 4 for Sam Reinhart? He just scored into the empty net again and it's 5-0 Florida with 5:05 left.

But the Oilers are finally on the board, socring with 4:42 left from Vasily Podkolzin. Still, it's 5-1.

10:37 p.m. ET

The hats are on the ice. The rats will be following soon and the Cup soon after.

Sam Reinhart scored just into an empty net with 6:34 left and it's 4-0 Panthers.

The Oilers pulled Skinner with seven minutes left (hey, why not?), but the Panthers quickly won the puck in their own end, got it to Reinhart at the blue line and he fired it home.

Now, it will be 6:34 of partying for the Panthers until the party really starts and six grueling minutes for the Oilers, who were totally outclassed and outplayed in the past two games after winning Game 4 here in overtime.

Just an unreal performance by the Panthers, who have clearly learned their lesson from last season, closing out the Oilers on the first try.

10:31 p.m. ET

Precious time is running out on the Oilers, who trail 3-0 with under 10 minutes to go.

They are outshooting the Oilers 26-19, but other than a few chances early in the game, haven't really sniffed a goal.

You can almost feel a sense of anxiousness and excitement in here. The Cup is so close the fans can taste it, but there is still enough time left to the Oilers to make a comeback. They need a goal and they need one quick.

Funny with 10 minutes left, the fans starting singing "Livin' On a Prayer." "Ohhhh, we're halfway there." They are.

10:24 p.m. ET

The Panthers and their fans are feeling it now. They are putting the pressure on the Oilers, playing like they are the team trailing 3-0. But they are ahead with 11:11 left.

The "We Want The Cup" chants have started in earnest here, and barring a miracle, they are going to get it.

The Panthers are so good at playing with a lead, it's almost like basketball's version of four corners. I know it's 3-0, but you have to figure this will be the longest 11 minutes for the Panthers and the shortest 11 minutes for the Oilers, who came oh so close last year, losing in seven games, only to likely lose in six this year.

10:20 p.m. ET

As the game gets deeper, there are some questions to ponder.

Who is going to win the Conn Smythe as the playoff MVP? To me, it's either Sam Bennett or Brad Marchand. Maybe Sergei Bobrovsky, but I would go with one of the other two.

Will either one of them be back with the Panthers next season? It think Bennett will, but Marchand is going to be a UFA and I bet he cashes in on this run somewhere else. Hey, he's played for the Panthers, so why not the Maple Leafs?

What happens with the Oilers?

Connor McDavid can sign a long-term deal with Edmonton on July 1 and the whole hockey world expects him to do that, but you have to figure the Oilers need to make some changes to help him win a Cup. This current roster is good, really good, but is not at the Panthers' level, and that is the level teams need to reach to win the Cup.

And finally, if the Cup is handed out to Sasha Barkov tonight, who gets it first? I think Aaron Ekblad, but we shall see.

I'm getting ahead of myself, but right now it certainly feels like we are going to see a coronation tonight. It's 3-0 Florida, with under 15 minutes to play.

I'm also getting in my last round of Hershey's miniatures up here since this will be my last game in Florida until the Winter Classic next season.

10:13 p.m. ET

With 20 minutes to go, the Panthers fans have already started to party. Their team leads 3-0 with one period to go.

It's been a dominating performance by the Panthers.

How dominating?

After two periods tonight, the Panthers have led for 235:49 -- the third longest time leading by any team in Stanley Cup Final history, behind only the 1987 Oilers (250:04 in 7 GP vs. PHI) and 1991 Penguins (219:47 vs. MNS in 6 GP). If they hold don't give up the lead tonight, they will have the record.

Crazy how good they have been this postseason.

9:55 p.m. ET

Cup fever is going through the roof here now. It's 3-0 Panthers after two and the Oilers are in big, big trouble.

The Panthers made it 3-0 with 2:29 left in the second when Carter Verhaeghe threw a shot on goal, Skinner gave up a big, lazy rebound and then Aleksander Barkov slid it to Reinhart where it hit off his skate in the crease and into the net.

The crowd is giving it to Skinner, and maybe this time, they are right.

While the DJ plays "Shout," this place is like an Animal House. All that's missing is the keg.

It's just remarkable how well the Panthers play as a team and how they turn defense into offense so quickly.

And how they can shut down players like Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Just smothering.

9:46 p.m. ET

We are at the four-minute shovel break in the second period and it's still 2-0 Panthers. The Oilers are outshooting the Panthers, 19-16, but the only numbers that matter is the score.

There is a fan they show on the Jumbotron who some fans think is Ric Flair. It's not him.

George Richards tells me he's a guy who has been coming to Panthers games for years and years, even when he was the only one here, and well, he sort of looks like Ric Flair. So when they show him on the board fans do the "wooo" chant.

But I'm telling you, it's not him.

9:40 p.m. ET

I don't want to say it's getting late early here in Florida, but the Oilers need to have something positive happen soon.

The Panthers lead 2-0 with under six minutes left in the second period and appear to not only be in control, but appear happy to have this end 2-0.

Sure, they are going for scores when they can, but they are playing a smart, patient game and keeping McDavid and Draisaitl to the outside.

They just played "Land of 10,000 Dances" here and the fans, and even Viktor E. Rat, was dancing.

Then the DJ played, "Rock N' Roll All Night" by Kiss and the crowd sung along after it ended (Brian Compton would be proud).

I honestly think they will Rock n' Roll all night if Florida wins this game.

This crowd is ready to party, the Oilers are trying to stop that from happening, but they only have about 25 minutes of game time to do so.

9:32 p.m. ET

For some reason they needed the scoreboard to tell fans to "Make it Loud" here. Not sure that was neccessary.

The crowd is rotating between "Let's Go Panthers" chants, "Bobby, Bobby" chants and "Skinner, Skinner" chants.

Speaking of Skinner, Jeff Skinner is playing pretty well for Edmonton. But the Oilers clearly need their big boys to step up.

And Stuart Skinner is playing well for the Oilers, too. He just made a nice glove save on Forsling after a long offensive possession by Florida where Barkov put on a show.

Man, that guy is so good. So underrated.

The Oilers had a good chance to score with 10:30 left, but Bob was there to shut the door again.

We are midway through the second and it's still 2-0 Florida.

9:23 p.m. ET

The Oilers come out with some life to start the second, with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl pretty much playing every other shift, but they aren't getting much help.

McDavid and Corey Perry just had a 2-on-1 against Gustav Forsling, and McDavid tried to slide a pass to Perry on the doorstep, but it didn't get through. It was a golden opportunity for Edmonton to get back in this game, but it didn't.

The crowd originally thought Sergei Bobrovsky made the save, and why not? He's stopped everything his way so far, with 13 saves thourgh the first 24 minutes.

The Oilers talked this morning about when they fall behind they need to gamble a bit and that leads to chances for the Panthers. Well, it's not gambling time yet, still plenty of game left, but the Panthers are being patient, yet taking their chances when they sense a scoring opportunity.

Also, it seems as if the refs are letting the boys play tonight. There will be no ticky-tack penalties, it appears.

It's still 2-0 Florida with 13:59 left in the second.

9:15 p.m. ET

The second period has started the Oilers need something good to happen quickly.

As the DJ plays "Crazy Train" by Ozzy Osbourne, the Oilers appear to be going off the rails.

In the past four games, including this one, they have been outscored 10-0 in the first period.

Another interesting tidbit, Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid were on the ice for both Florida goals. It's almost as if the other Oilers players are trying so hard to get them the puck in space that they are turning it over instead.

After Matthew Tkachuk scored, TNT showed a shot of the Tkachuk parents and Brady in the crowd celebrating. Brady was wearing a hat for the Elbo Room, the famed beachside bar in Fort Lauderdale that hockey folks from all walks of life have been known to frequent.

I amazingly did not make it there this year, choosing sleep over a nightcap or two.

If it's still there when the Winter Classic is held here in January, the Price family will make a trip.

8:58 p.m. ET

Things have gone from bad to worse here for the Oilers. The Panthers make it 2-0 with 46.4 left after a bad turnover at their own blueline by Evan Bouchard. The result is a Panthers' odd-man rush that Matthew Tkachuk finished.

The Oilers have played a really good period, but two mistakes and two goals for the Panthers and they are down 2-0.

The DJ just played some new-fangled version of "Boys of Summer" by Don Henley.

Not to make this an advertising space, but the guy who wrote that song with Henley, Tom Petty guitarist Mike Campbell, has released a book about his amazing music career called "Heartbreaker." If you have time this summer and are a music lover, take the time to read it or listen to it. It's awesome.

Back to the game, the Panthers are looking to play heartbreaker tonight and send the Oilers off into the summer again.

8:51 p.m. ET

The Panthers, thanks to their ferocious forecheck, had two Grade-A scoring chance, but each time were denied.

First, Sam Bennett won a board battle, then cut to the net with the puck, got off a shot but Stuart Skinner got his pad out.

A few seconds later, Matthew Tkachuk drilled an Oiler behind the net, got the puck and fed it to Bennett, who then tried to feed a teammate, but the pass was knocked away.

The Panthers, meanwhile, are upping their game on the defensive end too, getting their sticks in the way of seemingly every Oiler pass, shot and move on the board. Gustav Forsling has been an absolute menace so far for the Panthers.

It's 1-0 Florida with under three to go in the first peirod.

8:44 p.m. ET

It took 9:45, but we finally had some -- as Shawn Roarke would call it -- argy-bargy, with Evander Kane right in the middle of it.

Each team has played a pretty clean game so far, but the first penalties were called with Kane and Sam Bennett each going off, meaning we are playing 4-on-4, which certainly benefits McDavid and Draisaitl with more open ice.

And while Edmonton got some good chances, Sergei Bobrovsky was there to make the saves.

Still it appears as though Edmonton got a little momentum from the 4-on-4.

In fact, McDavid had a great chance to score, but Bobrovsky was there again, with a sweet poke check, resulting in "Bob-by, Bob-by" chants.

The DJ just played some Blink-182. I think it was that "Rock Show" song, but not sure.

It's 1-0 Florida with 6:57 left in a fast-moving first period.

8:35 p.m. ET

The line of Sam Reinhart, Sasha Barkov and Carter Verhaeghe are creating absolute chaos for the Panthers right now. They nearly scored on their next shift after Reinhart made it 1-0 at 4:36.

The crowd is really fired up. Each time a Panthers player gets off a shot it rises as one expecting another goal.

When they are not doing that, they are giving it to Stuart Skinner.

As for the Oilers, they talked this morning about getting to their game early, and they appeared to do so, putting on some early pressure, but one mistake and the Panthers capitalized, and they are on their heels again.

I know it's early, but it really feels like the next goal is absolutely huge. If the Panthers go up 2-0 it could be a long night for Edmonton.

We'll see what happens next.

8:30 p.m. ET

Well, so much for the Oilers' fast start.

Sam Reinhart just made it 1-0 Panthers and this place is going nuts.

With McDavid and Draisaitl on the ice, Reinhart stole the puck from Mattias Ekholm and Evan Bouchard, walked in on Stuart Skinner and beat him over the glove side.

It's the disastrous start the Oilers were trying to avoid, but one mistake at the blue line and it's in their net.

The Panthers have now outscored the Oilers 12-4 in the first period.

1-0 Panthers and they smell blood.

8:26 p.m. ET

It took only 16 seconds for the fans to start the "Skinner, Skinner" chants.

But for the most part, it's the Oilers who are making noise. They are in control early, with four shots on goal to the Panthers' none in the first three minutes.

I took just 1:12 for the Oilers to get the first scoring chance of the game. Evander Kane intercepted a puck in the offensive zone, fired it at Sergei Bobrovsky, who stopped the puck, but seemed to lose it in his pads. He was able to cover up for the face-off, but it was a scary moment for Florida.

I originally thought the Oilers would have to survive the first few minutes, but it's the Panthers who are sort of hanging on here early. Still 0-0, just underway.

8:20 p.m. ET

The anthems have been sung, Bobby Lu did his drum-banging and the puck has been dropped here in Florida.

Not surprsingly, this crowd is absolutely juiced for this game.

It sang along with the "Star-Spangled Banner."

Oh, the goal horn is working perfectly.

The "We Want the Cup," chants have already started. The opening few minutes of this game could determine if they get their wish.

The Oilers have gotten off to bad starts the past three games and quite honestly, are lucky to still be playing.

The fell behind early in Game 3, didn't recover. They fell behind 3-0 in Game 4 and somehow came back. They fell behind early in Game 5 and lost at home.

If the Panthers can score early, this COULD, COULD, get ugly early.

If the Oilers score first, it would give them a huge lift.

Here we go. Buckle up and enjoy.

8 p.m. ET

We were starting to get worried about NHL.com writer Derek Van Diest. He just showed up in the press box after waiting for an elevator up to the press box.

It's been quite a day with elevators for the NHL.com crew. There is a famous soccer team staying at our hotel so the security is really tight and because of that we all had to wait 5-10 minutes to get the elevator down to the lobby for the bus to the game.

Now, 5-10 minutes may not sound like a long time, but when you are waiting for an elevator it is.

Not only does George Richards control the coffee bar, he controls the TVs up here. A few minutes ago, George and NHL IT man extraordinaire Woody had a small tiff about the TV in the press box.

George wants the live feed, while some TVs are on a delay.

When the TV came back, Matthew Tkachuk was by the bench yukking it up with Charles Barkley. Talk about being loose before a huge game.

The players have gone back to the dressing rooms for final preparations, but not before some gamesmanship.

Corey Perry of the Oilers shot a puck toward the empty Panthers net, but A.J. Greer intercepted it and fired it back into the Oilers net while Perry was skating off.

We are just about 20 minutes away from Game 6 and maybe a few hours from a Stanley Cup celebration.

The Oilers, however, have other plans.

7:50 p.m. ET

Did Connor McDavid pull a Mark Messier?

During the pregame show on TNT he was asked by Darren Pang "Why are we going back to Edmonton?" And McDavid responded, "Because we're going to win."

Ok, that's not exactly a guarantee, and there is still some speculation over whether Mark Messier actually guaranteed the win for the Rangers in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Final against the Devils in 1994.

If you see Shawn Roarke in person, ask him, he would love to tell you about it.

Anyway, if McDavid is right, we all go back to Edmonton. If he's wrong, the Panthers win the Cup at home for the second straight season.

If you watched the warmup, you saw that NBA great Charles Barkley was between the benches for TNT. I had a feeling he was going to be here because when we got off the media bus I saw a woman outside the arena holding a credential with his name on it.

The arena bowl was a little more crowded for warmups than usual. This is the last home game of the season for the Panthers no matter what happens.

They just showed a guy in the crowd wearing a sombrero that had a rat wearing a mini-sombrero on top.

Speaking of ex athletes, if you believe in curses or jinxes or things like that, the Panthers have made sure the curse of the Dolphins cannot continue tonight.

The last seven times a Dolphins player has been the pregame drum-banger the Panthers have lost. So tonight, former Panthers goalie Roberto Luongo has the honors.

There is no word if Taylor Swift is coming back for Game 6. She was here for Game 4 and the Panthers lost, so maybe she is banned from coming too (kidding Swifties).

The other big celebrity up in the press box is Geroge Richards, who covers the Panthers for NHL.com. He is like the mayor up here with everyone stopping by to say hello. There was a mini emergency up here with his coffee bar and he wasn't around to solve it, but the problem has been taken care of.

Out in the parking lot, I saw the confetti truck, so clearly they are ready to party here if the Panthers can win the Cup.

If not, we all go back to Edmonton for Game 7 on Friday night, like Connor said.

7:40 p.m.

The Cup is in the house.

That’s right, for the second year in a row the Panthers can win the Stanley Cup on home ice. They did it in Game 7 last year. This is Game 6 tonight, and if they don’t get it done, everyone goes back across North America for Game 7 on Friday.

Clearly, the Panthers want to get it done, and though they have won seven straight series, they have struggled a bit closing out teams on the first try. Just remember last season, when they had a 3-0 lead on Edmonton only to lose three in a row. Over the last two playoff runs, they are 2-5 in the first chance to win a series. This season, they are 0-2 at home in those situations, getting shut out each time.

So keep an eye on that.

Also, keep an eye on Stuart Skinner in the Oilers goal. He was pulled in Game 4, benched for Game 5 and now he’s back in goal with the season on the line.

I’m sure the fans here will be riding him all night with “Skinner, Skinner” chants.

Right now, the fans are still outside in the heat and humidity getting their last few minutes of tailgating in before heading into the air conditioning for what they hope is a championship party.

When they get in a pretty cool rally towel awaits them. Each set has a towel with the first three Panthers’ playoff opponents crossed off and Edmonton without a line across it.

The warmups are about to start, so while that is going on, here is some required pregame reading for all of you from the NHL.com crew.

Here is the full game preview from Tom Gulitti.

Here is Derek Van Diest’s story on Stuart Skinner back in goal.

Amalie Benjamin wrote about Matthew Tkachuk and how he's feeling healthy at the right time of the season.

As for Connor McDavid and the pressure to win the Cup for Edmonton, Nick Cotsonika says he can’t do it alone.

And here’s more on the Panthers trying to close it out tonight.