As Panthers, Oilers Cruise, Team USA Earns Memorable Gold
The Stanley Cup Finals is starting to take form. The defending champion Florida Panthers are clearly on their way to the an appearance in the title round for a third straight year. They are doing whatever they want when facing the suddenly searching Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Finals and already have a 3-0 series lead. The Hurricanes have lost 15 straight games in the penultimate round.
The Edmonton Oilers consider an appearance in the SCF to be unfinished business after losing to the Panthers in seven games a year ago. They have a 2-1 lead over the Dallas Stars following one-sided victories in Games 2 and 3, and if they hadn't collapsed in the third period of Game 1, the Oilers would also be leading by a 3-0 margin. Unless the Stars' Mikko Rantanen can return to the form he had in the first round against the Colorado Avalanche – scoring 4 points in a period in two consecutive games – the Oilers are on their way to the title round once again.
The Stanley Cup playoffs were temporarily shunted to the back burner Sunday by the International Ice Hockey Federation World Championships in Stockholm. Team USA won its first world title since 1933 when Tage Thompson whistled a wrist shot into the net at the 2:02 mark of overtime to give the Americans a 1-0 win over upset-minded Switzerland.
Team USA may have had more famous victories in the 1960 and 1980 Winter Olympics but winning the world title for the first time in 92 years is a significant achievement. For the record, Team USA – and several of the other teams in the annual championship – consists of top NHL players from teams that did not make the Stanley Cup playoffs or were eliminated in the first round.
Thompson, a 6-6 winger from the always-struggling Buffalo Sabres, is one of the best scorers in the NHL. He scored 44 goals during the regular season and sensed his opportunity in the three-on-three extra session after taking a pass from Logan Cooley of the Utah Mammoth (last season's 'Hockey Club) and ended the drama. In addition to Thompson, the other U.S. hero was goaltender Jeremy Swayman of the Boston Bruins.
STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN - MAY 25: Jeremy Swayman #1 of team USA lifts the IIHF trophy after the 2025 Ice ... More Hockey World Championship match between Switzerland and USA at Avicii Arena on May 25, 2025 in Stockholm, Sweden. (Photo by)
He stopped 25 shots in the title game and was at his best throughout the tournament after a disappointing season with the Bruins. He had a 7-0-0 record, a 1.69 goals-against average and a .921 save percentage for Team USA and was overjoyed at his team's victory and his personal turnaround. Swayman was 22-29-7 with a 3.11 GAA and an .892 save percentage for the Bruins during the regular season.
"I tell you what, this tournament and this group rejuvenated me as an individual," Swayman said. "I gained so much more confidence. I found my game again. I was happy again. I just learned so much. This year was obviously an up-and-down year for me personally, and to come here and be surrounded by such quality human beings and getting a job done, that's a turning point for me in my life. I couldn't be more excited for it.
"It's a long time coming for USA Hockey, and to be part of the group that finally did it is surreal. I couldn't be happier man."
After Thompson scored his golden goal and the IIHF handed out the gold medals, the team accepted the World Championship trophy in an emotional manner.
Team USA captain Clayton Keller accepted the trophy, and he was joined by four of his teammates. They accepted the trophy by revealing a Johnny Gaudreau Team USA jersey. Gaudreau, a former star for Team USA, was tragically killed last August when he and his brother Matthew were hit by an allegedly impaired driver as they rode their bicycles in New Jersey.
Winning the World Championships may not be the equivalent of the Stanley Cup or Olympic gold, but when a team wins it first title in more than nine decade, it's worth celebrating.
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