GREAT NEWS: Adam Henrique of the Edmonton Oilers relishing the moment

For Adam Henrique, it has been a long time coming as he makes his Stanley Cup Final comeback with the Edmonton Oilers for the first time since 2012.

Henrique was an NHL rookie when he was here the last time. He reached the Stanley Cup Final in 2012 with two goals that will never be forgotten. The only other one was in Amerant Bank Arena—more on that later—and it resulted in Mike “Doc” Emrick’s iconic cry, “Henrique, It’s Over!!” which forced the New Jersey Devils back to the Stanley Cup Final.
But Henrique and the Devils’ story did not end happily. The Los Angeles Kings defeated New Jersey in six games. He did, however, score in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final to salvage the Devils’ season. However, Henrique’s closest experience with the Edmonton Oilers in a Stanley Cup Final was that one.

He was dealt to the Anaheim Ducks after the Devils failed to make the playoffs for several consecutive seasons. Despite making the playoffs in his debut season with Anaheim, he was considering the possibility that he could never again be able to participate in a Stanley Cup Final.
“Returning here has been a long journey,” Henrique said to Full Press Hockey. But there’s also another unique chance for us as a team, and as you know, this is the main reason we play hockey. It’s a dream, even without the NHL, and to get another chance is very exceptional. It seems like you might get that opportunity more frequently than you do, as I approach my rookie year. You sort of had to learn that the hard way, but it’s good to be back.

Henrique knew going into the 2023–24 season that he would be traded, but he was unsure of to whom. Oilers general manager Ken Holland came calling at the NHL Trade Deadline, acquiring Adam Henrique and Sam Carrick.
He had a fresh perspective with the Oilers that a journey back to the Stanley Cup Final was feasible.

“It’s kind of gone by pretty quickly, but something that I’ve been excited about for a long time and it’s pretty surreal that we’re back here,” Henrique told Full Press Hockey. “Like I said, going into the year, it’s, I knew there might be an opportunity at the trade deadline to go to a team with the aspirations of winning and, now we’re here all of a sudden.”

Once more, each player believes that they have a shot to play in the Stanley Cup Final again as a rookie. But Adam Henrique needed a whole twelve years to get here.

But as he enters the Stanley Cup Final for the second time, he is one of the players the team will look to for guidance. Henrique is one of four players with experience in the Stanley Cup Final. He can use that experience to help the Oilers focus on the game and limit the distractions instead of getting caught up in the circus.

“I think at the end of the day, like it’s hockey, right where you’re gonna play hockey, Henrique told Full Press Hockey. “And you know, a lot of distractions I guess through the week and leading up and there will always be more as a series goes on, but I think for the most part let’s just go out and play, go have fun and go play our game and get to our style of hockey and you know it’s gonna be challenging but you want to take in everything here because it’s a special time and, it will be a special few weeks for everybody so just looking forward to start.”

Well, Henrique is returning to a familiar building, and it brings back special memories for him. He still remembers what happened last time here, when the New Jersey Devils were in the playoffs.

Adam Henrique told Full Press Hockey, “Yeah, just an overtime winner and lots of good memories here in this building.”

With his prior experience and knowledge of what it takes to win the Stanley Cup, Adam Henrique is hoping that his time with the Edmonton Oilers will be different from his time with the New Jersey Devils in 2012.

On Saturday night, June 8th, the 2024 Stanley Cup Final’s first game will begin. Adam Henrique will undoubtedly have an effect on the match. As he relishes another trip to the Stanley Cup Final, he never fails to score in the crunch.