SUNRISE, Fla. — The Connor McDavid-led Edmonton Oilers were always supposed to be here, one win away from a Stanley Cup championship.
That it’s taken this long to get back to this spot is another thing entirely, though.
“It’s been a heck of a ride,” veteran defenseman Darnell Nurse said. “I’ve enjoyed the highs, the lows — everything that’s come along with it. It’s allowed me to grow, not only as a player but as a person.”
It’s been nine years since McDavid was drafted. And it’s been twice that long since the 2006 Oilers came up a victory short of winning it all.
The journey has been a winding one for the franchise — full of stops, wrong turns and near-calamitous mishaps.
“It’s been a long road to get to this point,” McDavid said. “It’s been a lot of ups and downs. A lot of lessons along the way — a lot of lessons. But it takes a lot. It really does.”
The Oilers are now on the verge of perhaps the greatest story in NHL history as they try to complete a 3-0 series comeback over the Florida Panthers.
But, as the saying goes, Rome wasn’t built in a day. And in this case, it was built and rebuilt several agonizing times.
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How the Oilers’ years as an underdog, then a laughingstock, led to this defining moment
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Courtesy : https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/live-blogs/panthers-vs-oilers-live-stanley-cup-final-game-7-score-updates/UVVTwxS4JFxf/