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Storm forces Panthers plane to leave Florida late
Credit: Photo by Dave Sandford/NHLI via Getty Images
The Stanley Cup Final continues tomorrow evening. The Panthers, who won the first two games in front of their home fans, will be in Edmonton to take on the Oilers tomorrow.

Connor McDavid and his team will probably be hoping that home-ice advantage will give a little boost to a team that, once again, faces adversity.

Of course, after Game #2 on Monday night, the Oilers were quick to return to Edmonton. That said, the Panthers decided to stay in Florida and make the trip today…

And we may be regretting that decision today.

At the moment, there’s a huge storm in Florida, so many flights have been cancelled since yesterday. In particular, the Panthers flight was grounded for quite some time today, having been scheduled to leave around 1 p.m. Eastern time.

It finally left in the final minutes, but the Panthers will arrive in Alberta much later than planned.

What’s important to remember is that this final is the one in NHL history where the distance between the two opponents is the greatest.

The journey is already long enough, and the weather doesn’t help.

Right now, the Oilers must be thinking they’ve made an excellent decision by heading home as soon as possible. While they’re comfortably ensconced in their facilities, the Panthers are seeing their plans turned upside down.

Paul Maurice noted that he didn’t want to rush his players by leaving early yesterday morning… but that might have made things easier down the road.

We’ll see if this delay has an impact on the Panthers’ energy levels tomorrow night, but clearly, the Oilers wouldn’t say no to a little help from the weather.

All’s fair in the playoffs, as they say.


Overtime

– Considering they’ll still be on the plane, it’s not likely to happen.

– Interesting stuff.

– Still.

– Messi doesn’t see himself leaving Miami.

– Enjoy.

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