The Florida Panthers were in complete control of Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final on Saturday night, taking a 3–0 lead early in the third period with a Brad Marchand goal that felt something like a dagger.
While there was still plenty of time left for things to change, and this series has already seen quite a bit of drama, one Oilers fan had apparently seen enough and decided it was time for a change. Literally.
As the cameras worked their way through the crowd gathering reaction shots to Marchand’s second goal of the night, they came across a fan who was busy taking off his Oilers jersey, revealing the Panthers jersey he was wearing underneath.
BRO SAW THE MARCHY GOAL AND SAID I LIKE FLORIDA NOW 😭 pic.twitter.com/InNcjehFxg
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) June 15, 2025
With all due respect, what the heck is happening here buddy?
Was there a lost bet? Was this a true change of allegiances? Maybe the most ambitious attempt at a reverse jinx we’ve ever seen at a live sporting event?
Fans online were perplexed.
lmao the cameras caught some guy taking off his oilers jersey revealing a panthers jersey underneath after that last goal??? sir????
— john (justoneenby on the other app) (@toshanshuinLA) June 15, 2025
THE GUY TAKING OFF HIS OILERS JERSEY AND REVEALING A PANTHERS JERSEY UNDERNEATH HELP MEEEEEE
— stef🤠 (@stefspeaksports) June 15, 2025
Uh, what's the deal with that guy taking off an Oilers jersey to reveal a Panthers jersey underneath?
— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) June 15, 2025
This is both entertaining and unforgivable. https://t.co/ZTyT1zk0Su
— Canucklehead (@StokedOnNucks) June 15, 2025
In a hilarious turn of events, the Oilers scored their first goal of the night less than two minutes of game time later, but the Panthers would match with another goal of their own a minute after that. Unfortunately TNT did not have a camera trained on this fan for the rest of the game, where he was, we can hope, furiously throwing his Oilers jersey on and back off again in response to each goal.
The Panthers would hold on to win 5–2, taking a 3–2 lead in the series and putting them a win away from winning the Stanley Cup for the second straight season. Game 6 is set for Tuesday night in Florida.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Defeated Oilers Fan Commits Jersey Sin During Game 5 of Stanley Cup Finals.