The 2024 NFL season doesn’t start until September, but the Buffalo Bills are already catching some strays from Edmonton Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch.
The rookie head coach is set to lead his team to their first Stanley Cup Final series in 18 years and met with the media this morning. Knoblauch and the rest of the Oilers will fly out east on Thursday morning to take on the Florida Panthers.
For the likes of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, it will be their first time in the finals, while most of the Panthers will be in their second consecutive Stanley Cup Final. When asked if the difference in experience matters, Knoblauch took his response in an unexpected direction.
“Experience is good, I don’t know how much experience is beneficial, you can ask the Buffalo Bills how important Super Bowl experience is,” Knoblauch said with a smile. “I think the biggest thing is having confidence and playing. When our guys are playing their best, they should have a lot of confidence.”
“The biggest thing right now is who is playing our best hockey.”
Coach Knoblauch on potential lineup changes heading into the Stanley Cup Final vs. the Panthers.@Enterprise | #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/vz2zZ73Se1
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) June 4, 2024
For those who don’t follow the NFL, those comments won’t make much sense, but it’s quite a shot at the Bills in an unexpected moment. What Knoblauch is referring to is the Bills losing four consecutive Super Bowl games between 1991 and 1994. The extensive experience playing in the biggest game of the year did not translate into any success for that team.
That type of streak has not been replicated in the NHL and the history of Stanley Cup Final losers coming back the next season for another shot at the title is a bit murkier. The last time that happened was the 2009 Pittsburgh Penguins, who lost to the Detroit Red Wings in 2008 and then came back the next season to win the Stanley Cup.
The longest streak of consecutive Stanley Cup Final losses in NHL history belongs to the 1968-1970 St. Louis Blues and the 1938-1940 Toronto Maple Leafs, who both lost three straight.
Edmonton will be hoping that the Panthers’ streak climbs to two consecutive losses after all is said and done this season.