Oilers' penalty kill has made a major difference in the Stanley Cup Final against the Panthers

EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — For all the talk going into the Stanley Cup Final about the Edmonton Oilers' vaunted power play and how Florida might have to adjust to stay out of the box, their penalty kill has actually been one of the biggest difference makers in the series.

Edmonton has killed off 19 of 20 penalties, including three in a 5-1 victory in Game 6 on Friday night to force a deciding Game 7 on Monday night in Sunrise.

“In every series, you work hard at the start of the series, get a little momentum, a little confidence," said forward Mattias Janmark, who has skated 13 minutes on the PK in the final and scored one of the Oilers' two short-handed goals. "They get on their heels maybe a little bit, we get on our toes and get the upper hand. But the next game, they’re probably looking over there at the one goal they can score in the next game, so we’re going to have to be at our best next game.”

With Janmark, linemate Connor Brown and defensemen Mattias Ekholm and Darnell Nurse — plus, of course, goaltender Stuart Skinner — leading the way, the Oilers' penalty kill is converting at an NHL playoff-best 94.1%, allowing just four goals on 68 opposing power plays.

“We’re playing with instinct and fast and closing things down,” Nurse said. “When the block needs to be made, guys are making blocks. It’s good. I think we’re doing it. I think for us even when we have success, we’re always trying to evolve and be even more on our toes.”

So on their toes that the penalty kill has outscored the Panthers power play 2-1 in the series. The Oilers were the first team since the 1991 Pittsburgh Penguins (Mario Lemieux and Bob Errey) to score a short-handed goal in consecutive Cup final games.

That's the result of taking Florida out of a rhythm and having the speed and talent to go the other way. Skinner pointed to winning a faceoff during a penalty kill in Game 6 as one example of being able to set the tone.

“Guys are just battling really hard,” said Skinner, who made four short-handed saves Friday night. “We’re keeping guys on the outside in the neutral zone, and when they do get their chances, we get big blocks. I think we just got a really good flow going right now, and we’ve gotten a lot of opportunities on the PK so for us to have that sort of chemistry has been great and we’ve got to do that for another game.”

Coach Kris Knoblauch delegates penalty killing duties to assistant Mark Stuart, a retired defenseman who skated plenty of these shifts during a 12-year NHL career. Nurse said Stuart does a good job preparing players for what to expect, and the system is working.

“They’re prepared," Knoblauch said. “They know what to do. I think we have a good system for the group that we have.”

Knoblauch also senses confidence from his penalty kill, which has been building now for four rounds. That's turning into smart plays and not a whole lot of mistakes, something that has fueled Edmonton's comeback from down 3-0 in the final.

“I feel like we’re doing a good job of cleaning up sticks and being physical, and when we’ve had the chance to clear the puck, we’ve been getting our clears, too, so it’s a good recipe,” Nurse said. "It’s been good, been instinctual, been fast, shutting stuff down, but we’ve got to do it again.”

AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL

Florida Panthers' Sam Reinhart (13) and Edmonton Oilers' Philip Broberg (86) battle for the rebound from goalie Stuart Skinner (74) during the second period of Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final, Friday, June 21, 2024, in Edmonton, Alberta. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press via AP)

Florida Panthers' Aleksander Barkov (16) crashes into Edmonton Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner (74) during the second period of Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final, Friday, June 21, 2024, in Edmonton, Alberta. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press via AP)

Florida Panthers' Sam Bennett (9) checks Edmonton Oilers' Connor McDavid (97) during the second period of Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final, Friday, June 21, 2024, in Edmonton, Alberta. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press via AP)

Florida Panthers' Vladimir Tarasenko (10) is checked by Edmonton Oilers' Darnell Nurse (25) during the third period of Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final, Friday, June 21, 2024, in Edmonton, Alberta. The Oilers won 5-1 to tie the series. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press via AP)

Florida Panthers' Matthew Tkachuk (19) is stopped by Edmonton Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner (74) during the third period of Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final, Friday, June 21, 2024, in Edmonton, Alberta. The Oilers won 5-1 to tie the series. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press via AP)

Florida Panthers' Evan Rodrigues (17) is stopped by Edmonton Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner (74) during the third period of Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final, Friday, June 21, 2024, in Edmonton, Alberta. The Oilers won 5-1 to tie the series. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press via AP)

JOLIET, Ill. (AP) — An Illinois landlord who killed a 6-year-old Muslim boy and severely injured the boy's mother in a brutal hate-crime attack days after the war in Gaza began was sentenced Friday to 53 years in prison.

Joseph Czuba, 73, was found guilty in February of murder, attempted murder and hate-crime charges in the death of Wadee Alfayoumi and the wounding of his mother, Hanan Shaheen.

Judge Amy Bertani-Tomczak sentenced Czuba to 30 years in the boy's death and another 20 years consecutively for the attack on Shaheen. The judge also sentenced him to three years imprisonment for hate crimes. The length of the sentence makes it all but certain he will die behind bars.

Czuba did not speak during the sentencing. His attorney, George Lenard, didn't immediately respond to an email from The Associated Press seeking comment.

The boy's great-uncle, Mohmoud Yousef, was the only family member who spoke during the hearing. He said that no matter the sentence length it wouldn't be enough. The boy's parents had plans for him and Czuba robbed them of that, he said.

Yousef asked Czuba to explain why he attacked the boy and his mother, asking him what news he heard that provoked him, but Czuba did not respond, the Chicago Tribune reported.

Czuba targeted them in October 2023 because of their Islamic faith and as a response to the war between Israel and Hamas.

Evidence at trial included harrowing testimony from Shaheen and her frantic 911 call, along with bloody crime scene photos and police video. Jurors deliberated less than 90 minutes before handing in a verdict.

The family had been renting rooms in Czuba’s home in Plainfield, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) from Chicago when the attack happened.

Central to prosecutors' case was harrowing testimony from the boy’s mother, who said Czuba attacked her before moving on to her son, insisting they had to leave because they were Muslim. Prosecutors also played the 911 call and showed police footage. Czuba's wife, Mary, whom he has since divorced, also testified for the prosecution, saying he had become agitated about the Israel-Hamas war, which had erupted days earlier.

Police said Czuba pulled a knife from a holder on a belt and stabbed the boy 26 times, leaving the knife in the child's body. Some of the bloody crime scene photos were so explicit that the judge agreed to turn television screens showing them away from the audience, which included Wadee's relatives.

“He could not escape,” Michael Fitzgerald, a Will County assistant state’s attorney, told jurors at trial. “If it wasn’t enough that this defendant killed that little boy, he left the knife in the little boy’s body.”

The jury deliberated for 90 minutes before returning a verdict.

The attack renewed fears of anti-Muslim discrimination and hit particularly hard in Plainfield and surrounding suburbs, which have a large and established Palestinian community. Wadee's funeral drew large crowds and Plainfield officials have dedicated a park playground in his honor.

Shaheen had more than a dozen stab wounds and it took her weeks to recover.

She said there were no prior issues in the two years she rented from the Czubas, even sharing a kitchen and a living room. Then after the start of the war, Czuba told her that they had to move out because Muslims were not welcome. He later confronted Shaheen and attacked her, holding her down, stabbing her and trying to break her teeth.

“He told me ‘You, as a Muslim, must die,’” said Shaheen, who testified at trial in English and Arabic though a translator.

Police testified that officers found Czuba outside the house, sitting on the ground with blood on his body and hands.

Separately, lawsuits have been filed over the boy’s death, including by his father, Odai Alfayoumi, who is divorced from Shaheen and was not living with them. The U.S. Department of Justice also launched a federal hate crimes investigation.

Yousef told reporters after the hearing that Czuba was a grandfather figure to Wadee and the family doesn’t understand what “fake news” Czuba may have heard about the war in Gaza that caused him to attack the boy and his mother. People need to understand Muslims before judging them, he said.

“Some people are bringing this war to this country,” Yousef said. “We cannot do that. We can’t bring the war here. We cannot bring hatred to this country . . . we need that to stop.”

Odai Al Fayoumi, father of Wadee Al Fayoumi, who was murdered by Joseph Czuba in 2023, speaks to the media after the sentencing of Czuba outside the Will County Courthouse in Joliet, Ill., Friday, May 2, 2025. (Pat Nabong /Chicago Sun-Times via AP)

Will County Prosecutor Christopher Koch exits the Will County Courthouse after the sentencing of Joseph Czuba in Joliet, Ill., Friday, May 2, 2025. (Pat Nabong /Chicago Sun-Times via AP)

Odai Al Fayoumi, left, father of Wadee Al Fayoumi, who was murdered by Joseph Czuba in 2023, walks out of the Will County Courthouse after the sentencing of Czuba in Joliet, Ill., Friday, May 2, 2025. (Pat Nabong /Chicago Sun-Times via AP)

Odai Al Fayoumi, left, father of Wadee Al Fayoumi, who was murdered by Joseph Czuba in 2023, walks out of the Will County Courthouse after the sentencing of Czuba in Joliet, Ill., Friday, May 2, 2025. (Pat Nabong /Chicago Sun-Times via AP)

Mahmoud Yousef, grandfather of Wadee Al Fayoumi, who was murdered by Joseph Czuba in 2023, speaks to the media after the sentencing of outside the Will County Courthouse in Joliet, Ill., Friday, May 2, 2025. (Pat Nabong /Chicago Sun-Times via AP)

Mahmoud Yousef, grandfather of Wadee Al Fayoumi, who was murdered by Joseph Czuba in 2023, speaks to the media after the sentencing of Czuba outside the Will County Courthouse in Joliet, Ill., Friday, May 2, 2025. (Pat Nabong /Chicago Sun-Times via AP)

FILE - Wadee Alfayoumi's father, Oday Al Fayoume, seated right, and his uncle Mahmoud Yousef attend a vigil for Wadee at Prairie Activity and Recreation center in Plainfield, Ill., Oct. 17, 2023. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)

FILE - Joseph Czuba, 71, stands before Circuit Judge Dave Carlson for his arraignment at the Will County, Ill., courthouse, Oct. 30, 2023, in Joliet, Ill. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast, File)