Oilers beat Panthers on Leon Draisaitl's OT winner in Game 1 - ESPN

EDMONTON, Alberta — The Edmonton Oilers swore things would be different in their Stanley Cup Final rematch with the Florida Panthers. They proved it in Game 1 with an impressive comeback and a 4-3 overtime win.

Last year, the Panthers took a 3-0 series lead that started with a shutout win. The Oilers were in uncharted territory, while Florida was playing in its second straight Final. Having gone through the experience of last season — and the heartbreak of losing in Game 7 — the Oilers were confident and poised before star center Leon Draisaitl's power-play goal with 31 seconds left in OT earned them the 1-0 series lead.

«It's huge. Obviously when you look back at it, if we get one win right away, it's a completely different story [last season],» said goalie Stuart Skinner, who was solid again with 30 saves Wednesday night. «I think the way that we showed up right from the get-go, and the way that we continued to keep on going even though we were down by two, that shows a lot of character by us.»

The mindset was clear even before the game. Skinner remembered feeling overwhelmed when the Stanley Cup trophy was presented on the ice before the first game last year. This time, when the Cup made its cameo, Skinner said he felt completely different.

«When I saw the Cup on the ice last year, I was kind of looking at it with googly eyes,» he acknowledged. «This year, I saw it already. So now it's time to get back to work. It felt completely different emotionally.»

The Oilers took a 1-0 lead just 1:06 into the game thanks to a furious forecheck by Draisaitl. Florida goalie Sergei Bobrovsky had trouble with a shot from inside the point. Draisaitl was there to shoot home the rebound for an early lead.

The game took a turn just