Leon Draisaitl Lifts Oilers to OT Win vs. Panthers as Fans Hype Epic Stanley Cup Final

One of the greatest Stanley Cup Final games in recent memory ended with the Edmonton Oilers defeating the Florida Panthers 5-4 in overtime on Thursday.

Once again, Leon Draisaitl was the hero, as he scored his NHL-record fourth postseason overtime goal (including two in the Stanley Cup Final).

While muscling off the Florida defense, Draisaitl fired a backhanded shot toward the net that deflected off Panthers defenseman Niko Mikkola and into the goal at 11:18 of OT.

With the win, Edmonton also became the seventh team in Stanley Cup Final history (and second on the road) to overcome a three-goal deficit to win the game.

The last time it happened was 2006, when the Oilers fell 5-4 to the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 1.

Nearly two decades later, the Oilers flipped the script and re-wrote the narrative of this series.

The Panthers looked like they would skate away with an easy win after a dominant first period. Matthew Tkachuk scored a pair of power play goals because Anton Lundell added an even-strength goal with 42 seconds remaining for a 3-0 lead.

Florida, which out-shot Edmonton 17-7 in the first, chased goaltender Stuart Skinner from the game for Calvin Pickard. That marked the second straight game in which Skinner was pulled.

In addition, this matchup featured the Panthers going 4-for-4 in scoring multiple first-period goals in the Stanley Cup Final.

However, the Oilers responded with three goals of their own in the second period.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins got the Oilers on the board with a power play goal at 3:33 off assists from Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid.

Edmonton kept the pressure up and got its second goal courtesy of Darnell Nurse at 12:47.

A couple minutes later, Vasily Podkolzin tied the game at 15:05 off a backhander.

And so this seesaw game entered the third period tied at three.

Edmonton dramatically took the lead with 6:24 remaining in regulation off a Jake Walman one-timer. Mattias Janmark caused a turnover in the Panthers' end, and the puck eventually found its way to Kasperi Kapanen, who slid a pass to Walman for the smooth goal.

Florida went to the empty net with 2:26 remaining but didn't have any shots on goal over the next two minutes. However, the Panthers executed an excellent backcheck and forced a turnover courtesy of Carter Verhaeghe. From there, it was tic-tac-toe. Verhaeghe found Sam Bennett, who sliced the puck to Sam Reinhart.

Reinhart then fired a pass to Tkachuck, but the puck found itself right back at him. Reinhart then became the hero, tying the game at four with 19.5 seconds left.

Reinhart was only a few seconds away from breaking the record for the latest game-tying goal in Stanley Cup Final history. That record, of course, was set by the Oilers' Corey Perry in Game 2 (17.8 seconds left).

Both teams had great chances in overtime. In particular, Bennett was inches from putting the game away after hitting the crossbar.

In the end, the Oilers pulled through with an electric and cinematic victory amid a classic series.

Game 5 will take place in Edmonton on Saturday at 8 p.m. ET.