Panthers coach Paul Maurice was baffled by an offside video review that wiped away a second-period goal Friday, saying there was « no way » for officials to make a definitive ruling.
— Florida Panthers coach Paul Maurice wouldn’t have challenged it. Edmonton Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch thought it was obvious. One thing was clear: The offside video review that took down Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov’s second-period goal was a turning point in Edmonton’s 5-1 Game 6 Stanley Cup Final victory Friday night.
Barkov appeared to score 10 seconds after Edmonton’s Adam Henrique gave the home team a 2-0 lead just 46 seconds into the second period. But the Oilers’ bench challenged the goal, saying the Panthers were offside. After a video review, the officials determined that Florida’s Sam Reinhart « preceded the puck into the offensive zone and was in an offside position prior to the Panthers’ goal », taking Barkov’s goal off the board and preserving the 2-0 lead.
The Oilers were in control of the game at that point. The ruling stopped Florida from stealing any of the momentum.
« You’re looking for a jump-start at that point », Maurice said. « The shots are 11-2 in the first period, so we need something to go. It would’ve been a spark for us for sure. »
Edmonton would add a third goal with 1:40 left in the period. Florida defenseman Gustav Forsling had an ill-fated one-timer attempt blocked by Ryan Nugent-Hopkins to center ice, where winger Zach Hyman found the puck, raced in and beat goalie Sergei Bobrovsky for his 16th goal of the playoffs.
