EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Connor McDavid is fine, and coach Kris Knoblauch expects the best hockey player in the world to be good to go for the Edmonton Oilers in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final.
That is the most important thing for Edmonton gearing up for another championship series against the Florida Panthers. Also, acknowledging the notable absence of injured forward Zach Hyman, the Oilers are much closer to full strength in the rematch than they were a year ago and are not limping into the final this time around.
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Florida Panthers defenseman Niko Mikkola, left, shoots to score a goal against Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov, right, during the third period in Game 3 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Eastern Conference finals Saturday, May 24, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Edmonton Oilers left wing Evander Kane (91) celebrates with defenseman Evan Bouchard (2) and defenseman Mattias Ekholm (14) after scoring against the Dallas Stars during the third period of Game 5 of the Western Conference finals in the NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoffs, Thursday, May 29, 2025, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid celebrates after scoring against the Dallas Stars during the second period of Game 5 of the Western Conference finals in the NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoffs, Thursday, May 29, 2025, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Gareth Patterson)
Edmonton Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch yells from the bench during the first period of Game 5 of the Western Conference finals in the NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoffs against the Dallas Stars, Thursday, May 29, 2025, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Gareth Patterson)
“We’re very confident in the group that we have and the players that are available,” defenseman Darnell Nurse said Monday after a day off the ice for players. “There’s been guys that have stepped up in huge moments so far over the course of the playoffs, and I’m sure over the course of the series we’ll need more of that.”
A smoother journey through the playoffs helps. Edmonton won each of its past two series in five games apiece, and that has allowed for some much-needed rest along the way.
“Are we 100% healthy? No, not quite, obviously with Hyman being out, which will be a huge loss,” Knoblauch said Monday. "But overall I would say we’re in a little bit better position physically.”
Reinforcements have also arrived just in time.
Winger Evander Kane returned for Game 2 of the first round against Los Angeles after missing the entire regular season recovering from multiple surgeries to repair injuries that knocked him out of the Cup final a year ago when he needed injections just to be able to walk. Defenseman Mattias Ekholm got back in the lineup for the clinching game of the Western Conference final against Dallas after thinking several weeks earlier he wouldn't be able to play again until October.
“When doctors tell you something, they’re usually right,” Ekholm said. “Most people didn’t think I was going to be in this position, so to be able to be part of this group, to be part of things on the ice and help this team win has been the goal the whole time and now that it’s reality is awesome for me.”
The Oilers did not win last year when they faced the Panthers, losing three in a row to start the series and clawing back to force a Game 7 only to experiencing a gut-wrenching defeat. They didn't have Kane healthy then to offset Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Bennett and Florida's hard-nosed pressure.
Now they do, with Kane and Corey Perry being counted on to make up for Hyman being out.
“We can play a physical brand of hockey,” Kane said. "We can play an in-your-face brand of hockey. Whatever game you want, we can give you. We’re going to play our game, and we’re looking forward to that challenge.”
The Panthers are also nearly 100% after some injury scares in the East final against Carolina to clutch scorer Sam Reinhart and vastly improved defenseman Niko Mikkola. Only depth forward A.J. Greer's status is any kind of a question going in.
McDavid provided some intrigue over the weekend by leaving practice after five minutes and a chat with trainers. Knoblauch brushed that off, saying the three-time league MVP and reigning playoff MVP was fine and said McDavid would practice Tuesday in the final preparation for the series.
Connor Brown is also expected to be back for Game 1 Wednesday night in Edmonton after missing the conclusion of the West final.
“He adds a lot of elements to our team,” Knoblauch said. “Obviously on the penalty kill we need him a lot, his speed, his checking. He’s scored and provided some nice offense throughout the season.”
Having gotten at least a goal from 19 different players during this run, the Oilers also seem mentally sharper than last year, when they were new to this stage of the playoffs going up against an opponent that had been there before. McDavid and Leon Draisaitl should keep driving the bus, but they don't need to do it all.
“This time around we have a lot more depth throughout the entirety of our lineup,” Kane said. "If we need scoring, we have scoring. If we need some guys that can be a little bit more physical, we can be more physical. Unfortunately, we’re going to have to use that depth and we’re going to have to get the job done with it.”
AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
Florida Panthers defenseman Niko Mikkola, left, shoots to score a goal against Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov, right, during the third period in Game 3 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Eastern Conference finals Saturday, May 24, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Edmonton Oilers left wing Evander Kane (91) celebrates with defenseman Evan Bouchard (2) and defenseman Mattias Ekholm (14) after scoring against the Dallas Stars during the third period of Game 5 of the Western Conference finals in the NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoffs, Thursday, May 29, 2025, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid celebrates after scoring against the Dallas Stars during the second period of Game 5 of the Western Conference finals in the NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoffs, Thursday, May 29, 2025, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Gareth Patterson)
Edmonton Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch yells from the bench during the first period of Game 5 of the Western Conference finals in the NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoffs against the Dallas Stars, Thursday, May 29, 2025, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Gareth Patterson)
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Thousands of people marched in Minneapolis Saturday to protest the fatal shooting of a woman by a federal immigration officer there and the shooting of two protesters in Portland, Oregon, as Minnesota leaders urged demonstrators to remain peaceful.
The Minneapolis gathering was one of hundreds of protests planned in towns and cities across the country over the weekend. It came in a city on edge since the killing of Renee Good on Wednesday by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer.
“We’re all living in fear right now,” said Meghan Moore, a mother of two from Minneapolis who joined the protest Saturday. “ICE is creating an environment where nobody feels safe and that’s unacceptable.”
On Friday night, a protest outside a Minneapolis hotel that attracted about 1,000 people turned violent as demonstrators threw ice, snow and rocks at officers, Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said Saturday. One officer suffered minor injuries after being struck with a piece of ice, O’Hara said. Twenty-nine people were cited and released, he said.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey stressed that while most protests have been peaceful, those who cause damage to property or put others in danger will be arrested. He faulted “agitators that are trying to rile up large crowds.”
“This is what Donald Trump wants,” Frey said of the president who has demanded massive immigration enforcement efforts in several U.S. cities. “He wants us to take the bait.”
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz echoed the call for peace.
“Trump sent thousands of armed federal officers into our state, and it took just one day for them to kill someone,” Walz posted on social media. “Now he wants nothing more than to see chaos distract from that horrific action. Don’t give him what he wants.”
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security says its deployment of immigration officers in the Twin Cities is its biggest ever immigration enforcement operation. Trump's administration has said both shootings were acts of self-defense against drivers who “weaponized” their vehicles to attack officers.
Connor Maloney said he was attending the Minneapolis protest to support his community and because he's frustrated with the immigration crackdown.
“Almost daily I see them harassing people,” he said. “It’s just sickening that it’s happening in our community around us.”
Steven Eubanks, 51, said he felt compelled to attend a protest in Durham, North Carolina, on Saturday because of the “horrifying” killing of Good in Minneapolis.
“We can’t allow it,” Eubanks said. “We have to stand up.”
Indivisible, a social movement organization that formed to resist the Trump administration, said hundreds of protests were scheduled in Texas, Kansas, New Mexico, Ohio, Florida and other states.
In Minneapolis, a coalition of migrant rights groups organized the demonstration that began in a park about half a mile from the residential neighborhood where the 37-year-old Good was shot on Wednesday. Marchers carried signs calling for ICE to leave and voiced support for Good and immigrants.
A couple of miles away, just as the demonstration began, an Associated Press photographer witnessed heavily armed officers — at least one in Border Patrol uniform — approach a person who had been following them. Two of the agents had long guns out when they ordered the person to stop following them, telling him it was his “first and final warning.”
The agents eventually drove onto the interstate without detaining the driver.
Protests held in the neighborhood have been largely peaceful, in contrast to the violence that hit Minneapolis in the aftermath of the killing of George Floyd in 2020. Near the airport, some confrontations erupted on Thursday and Friday between smaller groups of protesters and officers guarding the federal building used as a base for the Twin Cities crackdown.
O’Hara said city police officers have responded to calls about cars abandoned because their drivers have been apprehended by immigration enforcement. In one case, the car was left in park and in another case a dog was left in the vehicle.
He said immigration enforcement activities are happening “all over the city” and that 911 callers have been alerting authorities to ICE activity, arrests and abandoned vehicles.
The Trump administration has deployed thousands of federal officers to Minnesota under a sweeping new crackdown tied in part to allegations of fraud involving Somali residents. More than 2,000 officers were taking part.
Some officers moved in after abruptly pulling out of Louisiana, where they were part of another operation that started last month and was expected to last until February.
Three congresswomen from Minnesota attempted to tour the ICE facility in the Minneapolis federal building on Saturday morning and were initially allowed to enter but then told they had to leave about 10 minutes later.
U.S, Reps. Ilhan Omar, Kelly Morrison and Angie Craig accused ICE agents of obstructing members of Congress from fulfilling their duty to oversee operations there.
“They do not care that they are violating federal law,” Craig said after being turned away.
A federal judge last month temporarily blocked the Trump administration from enforcing policies that limit congressional visits to immigration facilities. The ruling stems from a lawsuit filed by 12 members of Congress who sued in Washington, D.C. to challenge ICE’s amended visitor policies after they were denied entry to detention facilities.
Associated Press writers Allen Breed in Durham, North Carolina, and Scott Bauer in Madison, Wisconsin, contributed.
Protesters gather during a rally for Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer earlier in the week, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Demonstrators protest outside the White House in Washington, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who fatally shot Renee Good in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Demonstrators march outside the White House in Washington, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who fatally shot Renee Good in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Demonstrators march outside the White House in Washington, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who fatally shot Renee Good in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Rep. Kelly Morrison D-Minn., center, Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., second from the right, and Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn., far right, at the Bishop Whipple Federal Building, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey holds a news conference as Police Chief Brian O'Hara listens, on Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jen Golbeck)
Protesters gather during a rally for Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer earlier in the week, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
Federal agents stand outside the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building as protesters gather in Minneapolis, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
Federal agents stand outside the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building as protesters gather in Minneapolis, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
Protesters gather during a rally for Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer earlier in the week, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
Federal agents look on as protesters gather during a rally for Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer earlier in the week, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
A woman holds a sign for Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer in Minneapolis earlier in the week, as people gather outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)
Two people sit in the street with their hands up in front of Minnesota State Patrol during a protest and noise demonstration calling for an end to federal immigration enforcement operations in the city, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Minnesota State Patrol officers are seen during a protest and noise demonstration calling for an end to federal immigration enforcement operations in the city, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Minnesota State Patrol officers are seen during a protest and noise demonstration calling for an end to federal immigration enforcement operations in the city, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Two people sit in the street holding hands in front of Minnesota State Patrol during a protest and noise demonstration calling for an end to federal immigration enforcement operations in the city, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
