WATCH: Huge SCRUM Breaks out During Oilers-Panthers SCF Game 3

A massive melee erupted in the third period of Game 3 between the Edmonton Oilers and the Florida Panthers, which resulted in several ejections.

WATCH: Huge SCRUM Breaks out During Oilers-Panthers SCF Game 3

Oilers-Panthers brawl (Image via X/@Sentinel_Sports/@BleacherReport)

All hell broke loose during the third period of Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Edmonton Oilers and the Florida Panthers. A massive scrum broke out, resulting in several fights and penalty minutes.

In a repeat of last year’s final, both teams traded heavy blows in Games 1 and 2. Both games would require overtime. The Oilers took the first one with a late goal from Leon Draisaitl, while the Panthers hit back with a 2OT winner through Brad Marchand in Game 2.

As a result of this, the stakes were already high in Game 3. In front of their home crowd, the Panthers started strongly and took the lead within just 56 seconds through Marchand.

They would later run away with the game, with goals from Carter Verhaeghe, Sam Reinhart, Sam Bennett, and Aaron Ekblad making it a 5-1 game in the third period.

Things got heated up in the middle of the third period when Trent Frederic delivered a cross-check on Sam Bennett. From there on the situation escalated.

An all-out scrum between all 10 players would break out on the ice. Several heavy punches were exchanged. While the officials were able to calm things down a bit, Darnell Nurse and Jonah Gadjovich kept on going.

The two of them would grab each other’s jerseys and exchange haymakers. On the side, Nate Schmidt and Connor Brown also traded some blows. Check out a video regarding this whole scrum below:

As Frederic started off the brawl with his cross-checking, the Panthers were awarded the powerplay penalty. Him, Bennett, Nurse, and Gadjovich were all issued game misconducts and ejected from the match following their actions.

The commotion did not end there, though. Even after the all-out brawl, the players continued to take some cheap shots at one another. A few more game misconduct penalties were issued later on. The Florida Panthers added another goal and ended up winning Game 3 with a 6-1 score.

Oilers-Panthers brawl in Game 3 records 4th most combined penalty minutes in Stanley Cup final

Things got feisty in the middle of the third period of Game 3 between the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers. The all-out brawl saw several players being thrown out of the game before the end of the match. This game recorded the 4h most combined penalty minutes in a Stanley Cup Final.

Oilers-Panthers brawl
Oilers-Panthers brawl (Image via Fox News)

As per NHL stats, a total of 35 penalties were issued in this game. 14 of them belonged to the Panthers, while the Oilers were slapped with 21 minutes.

Those 21 penalties of the Oilers resulted in a total of 85 minutes. Meanwhile, the penalties of the Panthers resulted in a total of 55 minutes.

As a result of this, a total of 140 combined penalty minutes were recorded in this game. This is now the 4th most combined penalty minutes ever recorded in a Stanley Cup final game.

As per stats from Sportsnet, the most combined penalty minutes recorded in a game was in 1986. During Game 4 between the Calgary Flames and the Montreal Canadiens that year, a total of 176 combined penalty minutes were recorded.

The Panthers now have an edge in this playoff series. They will take to the field on Thursday with a 2-1 series and will be hoping to take a giant step towards retaining their crown and going back-to-back in the Stanley Cup final.

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