Edmonton

WEB Oilers defeat Panthers 8-1 to extend series

EDMONTON

Two days after Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid showed his inner Yogi Berra, his team failed to take advantage of a gift-wrapped opportunity to close out the Florida Panthers in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final.

The Panthers, facing elimination, got a 37-save performance from Sergei Bobrovsky and scored three times on the power play to force a Game 6 back in Sunrise, Fla., on Sunday night.

The Oilers, who lost 5-4 in overtime in Game 4, had a chance to win the Cup on home ice for the first time since 1990. But they couldn't solve Bobrovsky, who was making his first start since Game 1.

The Panthers took a 2-0 lead in the first period on goals from Aleksander Barkov and Sam Reinhart. The Oilers got one back in the second period on a power-play goal from Evan Bouchard, but the Panthers restored their two-goal lead later in the period on a goal from Anthony Duclair.

Panthers go on the power play shortly after

The Oilers had a chance to tie the game in the third period when they went on a power play, but they couldn't convert. The Panthers then took advantage of another Oilers penalty to make it 4-1 on a goal from Carter Verhaeghe.

The Oilers pulled goalie Mike Smith with about 3 minutes left, but the Panthers added two empty-net goals to seal the win.

The Oilers now need to win Game 6 on Sunday to force a Game 7 back in Edmonton on Monday night.

In a post-game interview, McDavid said he was "disappointed" with the loss but that the Oilers would "bounce back" in Game 6.

"We had a chance to close it out tonight, but we didn't get it done," McDavid said. "We're going to have to be better on Sunday."