NHL announces bizarre schedule change for Oilers Stanley Cup Final rematch game
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Photo credit: USA Today Sports
As the NHL gets back into action after the 4 Nations Faceoff break, the league has announced a strange and minor schedule change for the Oilers upcoming Stanley Cup Final rematch game against the Florida Panthers.
The Oilers played their first Cup Final rematch game this season in December on home ice, and Edmonton lost to Florida by a score of 6-5. Next week's game will be on the road in Florida.
NHL announces minor schedule change for Oilers vs Florida Panthers next week
The NHL announced on their social media accounts today that the Oilers game on February 27 has been pushed up by 30 minutes to 5:00MT, as well as the Penguins and Flyers being pushed back by 30 minutes.
February 27th is a Thursday night skate packed with 12 games. The Oilers game was initially supposed to be the only game beginning at 7:30, but now it will be one of 6 games starting at 7:00. Now, the Penguins and Flyers will be the standout game at 7:30.
It's a minor change to the schedule, sure, but it's still a puzzling choice from the NHL for marketing purposes.
Hype around the NHL and hockey is at an all time high right now with Team Canada and USA dominating the headlines, and the upcoming Stanley Cup Final rematch game between McDavid's Oilers and Tkachuk's Panthers is a marquee game for even casual fans.
To take them out of the primetime slot in favour of the Penguins and Flyers is replacing a great game with two rebuilding teams. They're a classic rivalry, but it's just not comparable to the Oilers and Panthers.
Not only that, it's pushing up the start time even a little bit more on fans in Edmonton who will just be getting off work at puck drop. Connor McDavid joked earlier this season that the Oilers are always on the short end of the schedule stick.
At the very least, it's a questionable change from the NHL - and it wasn't a home game for the Oiler that wouldn't ore significantly affect fans.
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22 HOURS AGO | 81 ANSWERS NHL announces bizarre schedule change for Oilers Stanley Cup Final rematch game Should the Oilers and Panthers game be the primetime slot instead of Penguins and Flyers? | ||
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