Kapanen making most of chance with Oilers in run to Cup final

EDMONTON - Kasperi Kapanen cut through the neutral zone, knifed past a pair of flat-footed defenders, avoided a desperate poke check — and then chimed the puck off Sergei Bobrovsky's left post.

The Edmonton Oilers winger came within centimetres of penning a dramatic overtime ending to Game 1 of the Stanley Cup final.

His team would secure that victory later in the extra period when Leon Draisaitl finished off a beautiful power-play sequence. Kapanen was in the middle of the wild celebrations following that 4-3 triumph Wednesday as his team grabbed an early lead against the Florida Panthers in a rematch of the NHL title series.

It was a place he felt fortunate to be after a roller-coaster season that marked the latest chapter of an up-and-down career.

"The best days of my life right now," Kapanen said. "I'm just trying to enjoy it."

Kapanen has ridden the waves of professional hockey life. First-round pick at the 2014 draft. The son of a former NHLer. Million-dollar contracts. All the tools. Traded twice. Waived twice.

The 28-year-old didn't have to be told in the fall that his hourglass might be emptying quicker than he would have ever imagined.

"I knew that this could potentially be my last chance," Kapanen said after most of the cameras had left his stall following Game 1. "I was very grateful that they took an opportunity with me."

The Oilers plucked the Finn off waivers from the St. Louis Blues in November. That club had originally grabbed him from the same list of castoffs from the Pittsburgh Penguins in February 2023, less than a year into a contract that paid him US$3.2 million annually.

"It's possible I've been bouncing around and it just hasn't been going the way I wanted," said Kapanen, whose team hosts Game 2 on Friday. "Very appreciative of this team giving me a chance." 

Selected with the 22nd overall pick almost 11 years ago by Pittsburgh, he was dealt to the Maple Leafs as part of the Phil Kessel trade. Kapanen, viewed as a piece of Toronto's future, was rewarded with a three-year, $9.6-million deal after putting up 20 goals and 24 assists for 44 points in 2018-19.

But things went south the following season and he was shipped back to Pittsburgh before finding his way to St. Louis and, eventually, the Alberta capital, where he put up a pedestrian 13 points (five goals, eight assists) across 57 regular-season games. 

The son of former NHL forward Sami Kapanen, who played in the 2002 Cup final for the Carolina Hurricanes, waited his turn in these playoffs. He got his chance in Game 4 against the Vegas Golden Knights — and hasn't looked back. 

Kapanen scored the OT winner two nights later to clinch that series, and has added four points over his last six contests, including two assists Wednesday.

Edmonton head coach Kris Knoblauch said the organization, which looked at signing Kapanen last summer, liked his speed, strength, tenacity, shot and ability to play in different situations alongside teammates with a variety of skill sets.

"He had some ups and downs and just wasn't able to play well enough to really gain some momentum," Knoblauch said of 2024-25. "Not that he was ever bad, but we always wanted more." 

The Oilers, who lost last year's final in seven games to the Panthers, are getting exactly that. Kapanen has found a home on a line with star centre Leon Draisaitl and winger Evander Kane, and has been on the ice to defend leads late.

"Playing exactly (the way) we need," Knoblauch said. "He's been doing everything … he's got all the tools."

Draisaitl, who scored twice in Game 1, said Kapanen has been a welcome addition.

"A player that you can plug into any spot," Draisaitl said. "We took a chance on him and it's paid off big time."

"Sometimes you just don't get comfortable in a specific spot," Kane added. "We have a lot of good players … it's allowed him to play with good players and have some success."

While success in the NHL has been fleeting, Kapanen has starred on big stages before, including when he scored the OT winner in the gold-medal game at the 2016 world junior hockey championship in Helsinki against Russia.

"My blood pressure is high during the games," he said. "It is nerve-racking. But as players, this is what you dream of when you're a little kid — to play the Stanley Cup final. In my case, watching my dad play there and just knowing how hard it is and how it was a dream for him, and it was a dream for me.

"I'm just overwhelmed." 

Unsure of his future just over six months ago, Kapanen is thankful to be not only in the league, but under his sport's spotlight.

"I'm cherishing every moment," he said. "The job's not done."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 5, 2025.