Well, Game 6 is over, and so is the Edmonton Oilers’ dream of avenging their loss. “For whatever reason, our group doesn’t like to make it easy on ourselves,” said team captain Connor McDavid ahead of Game 5. “We’ve put ourselves in another difficult spot. It’s our job to work our way out of it, and I would expect that tomorrow,” added the Canadian hockey icon. Unfortunately, they made things a little too tough.

The Florida Panthers dominated Game 6 from start to finish, preventing the Oilers from even stringing passes together, as Sam Reinhart snuffed out their chances with not one, not two, not even a hat-trick, but four goals. However, Connor McDavid may have thought that sticking to a superstition might bring them some luck ahead of the game, and he pulled a 4 Nations Face-Off trick before Game 6.

Before the Edmonton Oilers star suited up in the red Canadian jersey, he arrived at TD Garden in Boston wearing a beige suit and a brown striped tie. The Oilers even posted the moment when 97 entered the building. And guess what McDavid wore while arriving in Florida for Game 6? That same suit. While the side profile shot made it impossible to see if he also wore the tie, the suit remained the same.

Now, this might seem like nothing at all, but hockey superstitions are a huge thing. Remember the time Jets’ star Gabriel Vilardi’s girlfriend, Megan Rodgers, wore the same painful heel, among many other things, on the night the Jets pulled off their miraculous victory? “I’ve been wearing the same heels. My toes are, like, bleeding, but it’s fine,” Vilardi recalled thinking at that moment.

In fact, Connor McDavid himself breached a massive superstitious belief that’s prevalent throughout the entire league. McDavid violated the ‘don’t touch the conference trophy’ superstition this year as a symbol of how confident the Oilers were heading into the Stanley Cup Final. Unfortunately, all their confidence couldn’t win the day.

Connor McDavid and Co.’s belief didn’t translate to wins

The Oilers projected confidence this year from the very first round. After hitting a roadblock in the first 2 games, the Oilers found their stride of dominance against the competition. “It’s been fun to be a part of, hasn’t been as emotional, has been very direct, and you know? Smooth and steady,” the team captain said after winning the NHL conference final against Dallas.

Connor McDavid even explained why he touched the Western Conference Final trophy. “It’s pretty obvious, I think… Don’t touch it last year, you don’t win. Touch it this year, hopefully we win,” he said about holding the Clarence S. Campbell Bowl. While they did win a scrappy Game 1 in overtime, it became a slippery slide for the Canadian team starting from Game 2.

While the Oilers showed grit, Brad Marchand’s double OT goal nullified their series lead. Then, Game 3 saw the Cats dominate the Oilers, before they pulled off another heroic comeback in Game 4. Yet, throughout this series, the Oilers never established dominance over the Panthers. Despite that, confidence levels remained high.

“Our backs are against the wall, and after a disappointing game all around, you have to bounce back,” Corey Perry said, joining Connor McDavid’s confident proclamation ahead of Game 6. Unfortunately, the Panthers once snuffed out that confidence on the ice, beating the Oilers handily with a 5-1 scoreline. Now, the Oilers have no other but to figure out what went wrong in the Stanley Cup Finals.