The vibes are high in the Alberta capital after the Edmonton Oilers did the unthinkable and forced a winner-takes-all Game 7 in the Stanley Cup Final against the Florida Panthers.
Rogers Place was alive with chants of “We want the Cup” as the final minutes dwindled into a convincing 5-1 victory. Leon Draisaitl kept the good vibes going in his post-game press conference with reporters.
The win means the Oilers will send a contingent of beat reporters on yet another long-haul flight down to Florida. When Sportsnet’s Mark Spector jokingly pointed out that the older reporters were not thrilled about boarding another seven-hour commercial flight, the German power forward was quick with a rebuttal.
“I don’t feel bad for you,” Draisaitl said with a wry smile as laughter broke out from reporters in attendance.
“Really, really proud to give ourselves a chance.”
Skinner & Draisaitl speak as the #Oilers force Game 7 in the Stanley Cup Final vs. the Panthers with tonight’s win. @Enterprise | #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/8G9EhilaP1
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) June 22, 2024
This is another chapter to add to Draisaitl’s long-standing rocky relationship with local media. Though this one was on the lighter side and there wasn’t an ill intent behind the 28-year-old’s word, that hasn’t always been the case.
A few seasons ago, amid a rough stretch of the regular season, Draisaitl got into it with longtime beat reporter Jim Matheson which resulted in a fiery exchange between the two. It ended with Matheson calling Draisaitl “pissy” and it was a moment that people still refer back to today whenever the former 2014 first-round pick doesn’t appear to be in the best mood.
Earlier this year, Draisaitl also snapped back at another reporter when he was pressed on a mistake made by Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner in an early-season loss. It wasn’t as explosive as the “pissy” moment but it did show a bit of Leon’s mean streak.
Draisaitl doesn’t have anything to be upset about tonight. After calling himself out before Game 6, he turned in a great performance and picked up a wicked assist on Warren Foegele’s opening goal of the game.
Whether the reporters like it or not, they will be spending their weekend booking and boarding one last flight to Florida. Game 7 will take place on Monday night and one thing is for certain: somebody is winning the Stanley Cup at the end.