Connor McDavid gets mauled with dirty punches
Game 4 between the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers got heated as Connor McDavid was targeted by Matthew Tkachuk and Sam Bennett.
During the second period, Zach Hyman was hit from behind by Bennett, sparking a scrum. As McDavid came in to defend his teammate, Tkachuk landed several punches on the Oilers’ captain, before putting Connor McDavid in a headlock and continuing to land punches on him before the referees’ intervention.
A fairly dirty sequence from Sam Bennett and Matthew Tkachuk lands Edmonton on a 2-man advantage#TimeToHunt | #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/qW1oe2SU80
— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights & News (@HockeyDaily365) June 16, 2024
Moments later, Panthers’ Sam Bennett hit McDavid with a few jabs to the jaw, but McDavid appeared to laugh it off.
THINGS ARE HEATING UP 🔥 pic.twitter.com/dW3bzd4Pui
— Spittin' Chiclets (@spittinchiclets) June 16, 2024
Sam Bennett and Matthew Tkachuk were both handed two-minute roughing penalties, giving the Oilers a 5-on-3 advantage. The Oilers ended the second period leading 6-1 with goals from three players who had gone goal-less in the series so far in McDavid, Nurse and Nugent-Hopkins.
The Oilers piled on the Cats, who had no answer to the McDavid and co.’s offense in Game 4. Goals from Dylan Holloway and Ryan McLeod sealed Edmonton Oilers’ commanding 8-1 victory.
Connor McDavid stands out with four-point night as Oilers pummel Panthers in Game 4
Connor McDavid had a massive four-point night from three assists and one goal in Oilers’ massive Game 4 victory. He broke Wayne Gretzky’s record of 31 assists in the postseason, and now has the chance to build a new record in Game 5.
The Oilers dominated Game 4 with a commanding 8-1 victory over the Panthers to trail 3-1 in the series. Just under four minutes into the opening frame, Connor Brown broke in on a two-on-one rush and set up Janmark for a backhand finish to open the scoring. The Oilers struck again when Mattias Ekholm sent a perfect pass to Adam Henrique in front of the net, who deflected it past Sergei Bobrovsky to make it 2-0.
The Panthers got one when Vladimir Tarasenko tipped in a Gustav Forsling shot on the power play to cut the Oilers’ lead to 2-1. However, the Oilers responded quickly at the end of the first period as Dylan Holloway finished off a great pass from Leon Draisaitl to restore the two-goal advantage. Just under two minutes in the second period, Connor McDavid flew through the neutral zone and snapped a shot under Bobrovsky’s blocker for his first of the series, pushing the lead to 4-1.
The Oilers kept pouring it on as Darnell Nurse blasted a shot top corner past Bobrovsky off a feed from McDavid to make it 5-1. Draisaitl then rattled the crossbar on a one-timer before Ryan Nugent-Hopkins shoveled in the rebound for his first of the series, giving the Oilers a commanding 6-1 lead through two periods.
In the third period, Corey Perry sent a low pass to Connor McDavid, who then assisted on Dylan Holloway’s second goal of the game. Ryan McLeod netted the final goal to make it 8-1 for the Oilers.
