Oilers’ McDavid: ‘Maybe it was the Hockey Gods getting us back’

Connor McDavid has a better idea of how the Dallas Stars felt last weekend after Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final.

The Florida Panthers scored the ever-important first goal in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final on their first shot of the night, but they also highlighted a disturbing trend for the Edmonton Oilers‘ netminder.

Stuart Skinner has allowed a goal on the first shot he’s faced for the fourth time these playoffs and for the 11th time this season, per Sportsnet Stats.

The Panthers were able to slide one past the Oilers’ starter just under four minutes into the game off the rush, as Carter Verhaeghe scored off a cross-ice pass from Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov.

In doing so, Verhaeghe became the first player to score on their team’s first shot in the Stanley Cup Final since Mike Fisher did so for the Ottawa Senators in 2007.