Stanley Cup Final 2024: Oilers maul Panthers, 8-1, as Connor McDavid passes Wayne Gretzky in NHL record books

McDavid's mark of 32 assists is now tops in a single NHL postseason

There will not be a sweep in the Stanley Cup Final. After dropping the first three games, the Edmonton Oilers finally broke through on offense for an 8-1 win over the Florida Panthers in Game 4, and Connor McDavid erased one of Wayne Gretzky's NHL playoff records in the process.

Edmonton combined for just four goals in the first three games of the series, and they surpassed that total through just two periods on Saturday night. The party at Rogers Place got started early when Mattias Janmark tallied a shorthanded goal just 3:11 into the game, and the Oilers never really looked back after that.

The entire Oilers roster was terrific in Game 4, but McDavid was truly exceptional, and he needed to be with his team one loss away from elimination. Not only did McDavid pot his first goal of the series in the second period, but he also tallied three assists in the game. That gave him 32 assists in these playoffs, and that broke Gretzky's record for the most helpers in a single postseason.

The rest of Edmonton's big guns, which had been silent through the first three games, finally got rolling in this one.

Darnell Nurse's first tally of the playoffs made it 5-1. The Oilers' first power play goal of the Stanley Cup Final gave them a 6-1 lead, and that one also happened to be Ryan Nugent-Hopkins' first goal of the series, too.

Leon Draisaitl, who entered the game with zero points in this series, came up with two assists in Game 4. Zach Hyman still hasn't found the back of the net, but he found the stat sheet with a pair of assists as well.

The Panthers were unusually leaky on defense all game long, allowing more goals in this game than they had in any other throughout the season. Sergei Bobrovsky, who looked unbeatable in the first three games, was pulled after allowing five goals on 16 shots.

In all fairness, the players in front of Bobrovsky didn't give him much help. The Oilers were torching Florida off the rush all night, and they had all kinds of time and space with which to work in the offensive zone.

The result of all those defensive breakdowns was a seven-goal loss, which is tied for the second-largest margin of defeat in a Stanley Cup Final game. Only the Pittsburgh Penguins' 8-0 drubbing of the Minnesota North Stars in 1991 was worse.

This is now the second time the Panthers have suffered an 8-1 defeat in the Final with the the last instance coming against the Colorado Avalanche in Game 2 of the 1996 Stanley Cup Final.

Florida has to shake this one off because it will have another shot to clinch the Stanley Cup in Game 5, which is on Tuesday night in Amerant Bank Arena.

[Jun 15, 2024 at 10:59 pm ET · Austin Nivison]

Final: Oilers 8, Panthers 1

The Oilers needed to be the more desperate team in Game 4, and they definitely were. Edmonton jumped all over Florida and finally broke through for an offensive explosion. Connor McDavid four points (1 goal, 3 assists), Leon Draisaitl had a pair of assists, and Darnell Nurse scored his first goal of the playoffs. If Edmonton brings this effort to Sunrise, we might have a series.