Edmonton Oilers' Adam Henrique soaking in the moment

It has been a long time coming for Adam Henrique as he returns to the Stanley Cup Final with the Edmonton Oilers for the first time since 2012.

The last time Henrique was here, he was a rookie in the NHL. In 2012, he scored two memorable goals to reach the Stanley Cup Final. One came in Amerant Bank Arena, and more on that later; the only other sent the New Jersey Devils back to the Stanley Cup Final with the famous call from Mike “Doc” Emrick: “Henrique, It’s Over!!”

However, it was not a storybook ending for Henrique and the Devils. New Jersey lost in six games to the Los Angeles Kings. However, he did score in the Stanley Cup Final to keep the Devils season alive in Game 4. But that was the closest Henrique sniffed a Stanley Cup Final until now with the Edmonton Oilers.

The Devils missed the playoffs for multiple years, and he was traded to the Anaheim Ducks. Though he made the playoffs in his first season with Anaheim, there was a thought going through his mind that he may never reach a Stanley Cup Final again.

“It has been a long way to get back here, Henrique told Full Press Hockey. “But another special opportunity for us as a team and you know this is ultimately what we play hockey for. Even before the NHL, it’s a dream and to get another opportunity is pretty special. Getting there my rookie year and it seems like you might get that opportunity more often than you do. So U kind of learned that the hard way it’s but it’s nice to be back.”

Entering the 2023-24 season, Henrique knew he would be traded but did not know where. At the NHL Trade Deadline, Oilers GM Ken Holland came calling and acquired Adam Henrique along with Sam Carrick.

With the Oilers, he found a new belief that a return trip to the Stanley Cup Final was possible.

“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, so 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.

Again, every player thinks there is a chance they will return to the Stanley Cup Final as a rookie. However, it took Adam Henrique 12 years to reach this point.

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.

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

Understanding what it takes to win the Stanley Cup and being there before, Adam Henrique hopes for a different outcome with the Edmonton Oilers than in 2012 with the New Jersey Devils.

Game 1 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final gets underway on Saturday night, June 8th. Expect Adam Henrique to make an impact on the game. He always knows how to score in the big moments as he soaks in another trip to the Stanley Cup Final.