"I'll take a hit of whatever he's smoking": Fans rip Kris Knoblauch for claiming Oilers have shown Panthers are beatable

After a disheartenin͏g 4-3 loss in ͏Gam͏e 3͏ of the St͏anley Cup Final on Thursday against the Florida Panthers, E͏dmonton O͏ilers coach Kris Knoblauch remains optimistic ͏despite his team facing a 3-0 serie͏s defi͏cit. Knoblauch emp͏hasized the O͏ilers' missed oppor͏t͏unit͏ies:

"I think about the second period and how well we started, and we had a couple breakaways, some really good slot chances and then, you know, we don't score on those and I like where we were going after (Warren) Foegele scored that huge goal."

He expressed confidence in his team's ability to compete:

"We've had a 16-game winning streak. When things go well, we can really turn it, turn it up. And, you know, I think we've showed that we can beat this team. I think there's a lot of belief in that."

However, fans and critics are skeptical of Krish Knoblauch's optimism, pointing to critical shortcomings like Edmonton's faltering power play, which stands at 0-for-10 in the series.

Fans on X (formerly Twitter) are frustrated not just with the team's missed opportunities but also with HC Kris Knoblauch's exaggerated statements. One of the fans commented:

"I’ll take a hit off whatever he’s smoking"

Another fan also highlighted Kris Knoblauch's take on beating the Panthers:

"Oilers 0-5 against the Panthers this season. How exactly have they shown they can beat Florida?"

Other fans are also frustrated with Knoblauch's claims.

"Literally haven’t beat them yet" one fan said

"The Oilers didn't even beat the Panthers in the regular season" another fan pointed

"When? Now would be a good time. lol." one fan chimed in

"When? How? Where exactly?" one fan reacted

Some fans mocked Kris Knoblauch's comments.

"Ummmm. Kris" one fan said

"By losing?" another fan said

With Connor McDavid held off the scoresheet in the last three games and has only three assists in the series. Including a lapse that saw the Panthers score three goals in over six minutes in the second period of game 3, the odds of a comeback appear slim.

The Oilers have one last chance to extend the series in Game 4, scheduled for Saturday.

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Captain McDavid's take on the loss contrasts coach Kris Knoblauch's

Re͏flec͏ting on th͏e Edmon͏t͏on O͏i͏lers' lo͏ss in ͏Game 3,͏ captain Con͏nor͏ ͏McDavid ex͏pre͏ssed a͏ pragmatic͏ vie͏w ͏contrasting with͏ HC K͏nobl͏auch's o͏pt͏imi͏sm.

"It’s 3-0. That’s the only frustration," McDavid lamented post-game. "It doesn’t matter how the games went, all that matters is the result."

Connor McDavid acknowledged the Oilers' missed opportunities:

"I thought we had lots of looks–I thought the game was right there, but a couple mistakes, and they find a way to score."

Despite the setbacks, McDavid remained focused on the immediate task ahead, emphasizing the need to regroup for Game 4.

"We’ve got to get ready for Game 4 and get a win. That’s all we’ve got to do," he asserted.