Oilers ready to get physical with Panthers in Stanley Cup Final – Sportsnet.ca

The Florida Panthers aren’t afraid to roll out the hits — and that’s just fine with the Edmonton Oilers.

While the Oilers-Dallas Stars Western Conference Final wasn’t necessarily the most physical series, things figure to be different against the Florida Panthers.

Paul Maurice’s Panthers were second in the league in penalty minutes in the regular season and are in that same No. 2 spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The Panthers can grind it out with the best of ’em, while the Oilers, of course, are led by two of the most talented players in the world in Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.

But if the going gets tough, the Oilers say they’re ready to get going.

“We can be a physical team, too,” Draisaitl said Wednesday as the Oilers met the media in Edmonton. “Obviously, we like to play with the puck. But we’re certainly not intimidated by physicality. We’ve handled it well in the Vancouver series, (and) handled it well in the L.A. series.

“Dallas was a little bit different. We’re a good enough team, we’ve enough guys that know how to play that type of way as well. We’ll be ready to go.”

One Panther who tends to excel in chippy games is a player very familiar to the Oilers — former Calgary Flames star Matthew Tkachuk.

“I would expect the same guy,” McDavid said. “He’s a great player, smart, effective, understands the gamesmanship side of the game. He’s good at it.”

Watch Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final on Saturday at 8 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. MT on Sportsnet or Sportsnet+.