Don Cherry Doubles Down on Stanley Cup Final Winner Pick
Don Cherry Doubles Down on Stanley Cup Final Winner Pick originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
The 2025 Stanley Cup Final features a rematch between the Florida Panthers and the Edmonton Oilers, one year after Florida defeated Edmonton in seven games to win its first championship.
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The NHL hasn't seen a finals rematch since 2009, when the Pittsburgh Penguins avenged their loss to the Detroit Red Wings from the season before.
While not everyone is expecting history to repeat itself, legendary NHL coach and broadcaster Don Cherry thinks we'll see another revenge fulfilled.
Cherry is staying firm on his prediction from earlier this spring, and he made that clear while speaking on Episode 310 of the "Don Cherry Grapevine Podcast."
Florida Panthers center Sam Bennett (9) and Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid (97) get into a scrum in the 2024 Stanley Cup Final.Sergei Belski-Imagn Images
"I'm still sticking with Edmonton," Cherry said without hesitation when his son, Tim, asked to revisit his pick for the potential finals winner.
The Oilers dropped both regular-season games against the Panthers this year. Still, Cherry isn't backing away from his original pick, even though he faced a tough question from Tim regarding the upcoming goaltending battle.
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Tim Cherry suggested he'd take the Panthers' Sergei Bobrovsky over the Oilers' Stuart Skinner in a long series, to which Don Cherry responded directly.
Edmonton Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner (74) and center Connor McDavid (97) celebrate a win in the 2024 Stanley Cup Final at Rogers Place.Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports via Imagn Images
"Skinner's playing just as good," Cherry said about the Oilers netminder compared to Bobrovsky's postseason run. "Whether he'll do it in the finals ... we'll see."
Tim Cherry, however, agreed with his father that Florida won't be able to push Edmonton around the way they did the Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes, siding with his elder and backing up the Oilers on that front.
Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final is set for puck-drop at Rogers Place on Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET.
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Related: Don Cherry's Big Stanley Cup Final Concern About Oilers' Stuart Skinner
Related: NHL Insider Adds Fuel to Connor McDavid-Maple Leafs Speculation
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 2, 2025, where it first appeared.
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