from Mark Spector of Sportsnet,

The rookie goalie had never had it happen to him before, while the 750-game defenceman could only rub his prodigious beard and mutter, “Never seen anything like it.”

Oilers fans will recall the Miracle on Manchester back in 1982? That was when the Boys on the Bus squandered that 5-0 lead and lost a playoff game to the Kings, 6-5 in overtime.

Well, Mattias Ekholm watched in amazement from the bench as a new chapter in this Kings-Oilers rivalry played out, a broken goalie stick that nearly forced a Game 7 in a series the Oilers had in the palm of their collective hand.

It was the Fluke on Figeuroa, and it darned near sent us all home for an edgy Game 7 at Rogers Place.

“It's okay that there's some drama in the story,” said head coach Jay Woodcroft, whose team is penning a new chapter in Oilers lore once again this spring.

With Edmonton leading this series-clinching game 4-3 and set to put it away on a powerplay with 12 minutes to play — goalie Stuart Skinner gathered a puck at the top of his crease as defenceman Evan Bouchard peeled away to the corner awaiting the puck.

He was, Skinner said, “just trying to hit Boosh with a nice, crisp pass.”

Then, his goal stick buckled. It had been cracked earlier by an Adrian Kempe whack, but that damned CCM waited for the least opportune moment to crater.

Skinner fanned on his pass, Phillip Danault cashed the easiest shorthanded goal of his career, and the game was suddenly in the balance.

continued

Watch the goal below.