Edmonton Oilers HC roasts Buffalo Bills while answering Stanley Cup Final question

Kris Knoblauch was 12 years old and growing up in Canada when the Buffalo Bills lost the first of four straight Super Bowls. Apparently, it was a formative experience in his early days as a sports fan.

Now head coach of the Edmonton Oilers, Knoblauch led the team to the Stanley Cup Final, where the Oilers will attempt to become the first Canadian NHL champion since the Montreal Canadiens in 1993. And a lesson taken from the difficulties of the Bills at the beginning of his life has not left him at 45 years old.

At a news conference Tuesday, ahead of Saturday’s opener against the Florida Panthers, Knoblauch was asked if final-stage hockey experience makes a significant difference.

“Yes, the experience is good,” he said. “I don’t know how beneficial the experience is. Ask the Buffalo Bills how important the Super Bowl experience is. But I think the most important thing is having the confidence to play. When our guys play their best, they should have a lot of confidence.”

The Florida Panthers are playing for the Stanley Cup for the second time in as many years under head coach Paul Maurice, after losing the 2023 championship to the Vegas Golden Knights.

Maurice himself is an 11-season playoff veteran. His teams haven’t missed the playoffs since 2017.

As for Knoblauch, he took over for Jay Woodcroft at the start of the 2023-24 season, as the Oilers struggled to a 3-9-1 start. Since then, Edmonton has gone 46-18-5, then eliminated the Los Angeles Kings, Vancouver Canucks and Dallas Stars in the playoffs.

This is Knoblauch’s first head coaching position at the NHL level after four seasons behind the bench of the Hartford Wolf Pack, the American Hockey League affiliate of the New York Rangers.

Under the circumstances, it makes sense that he would be sensitive to any journalist questioning his lack of experience.

“(Knoblauch) came in and saved the season,” Oilers general manager Ken Holland told ESPN. “The team rallied around him and we got to .500 by Christmas time. We dug a big hole and Kris was a big reason why.”

The Oilers are fighting for the team’s first Cup since losing in the 2006 Cup final to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.

As for the bills? They are still looking for their first Super Bowl appearance since 1993, when they lost the second straight championship game to the Dallas Cowboys. Buffalo lost to Washington in 1991 and to the New York Giants in 1990.