6 days ago
The Stanley Cup Final is set. What to know about the Panthers-Oilers rematch
The Stanley Cup Final rematch is set.
The Florida Panthers and the Edmonton Oilers will meet in the 2025 Stanley Cup Final after also facing off for the championship just a year ago. The Panthers won the 2024 series in seven games, going up 3-0 in the best-of-7 series before dropping Games 4, 5 and 6 to force the winner-take-all Game 7.
Game 1 will be 8 p.m. Wednesday, June 4, at Edmonton's Rogers Place.
The Oilers will have home-ice advantage, hosting Games 1, 2, 5 (if necessary) and 7 (if necessary). The Panthers would host Games 3, 4 and 6 (if necessary).
Here's what you need to know about the matchup.
How did the Panthers and Oilers advance to the Stanley Cup Final?
The Panthers, who finished third in the Atlantic Division, made it to the Stanley Cup Final by defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning in five games in Round 1, the Toronto Maple Leafs in seven games in Round 2 and the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference final in five games. Each series was a rematch of a previous playoff series from the past two years (Tampa Bay in 2024, Toronto in 2023, Carolina in 2023).
The Oilers, who finished third in the Pacific Division, beat the Los Angeles Kings in six games, the Vegas Golden Knights in five games and the Dallas Stars in five games to return to the Stanley Cup Final.
How rare is a Stanley Cup Final rematch?
This will be just the fifth time in NHL history since the playoff field expanded beyond six teams in 1967 that two teams will face off in the Stanley Cup Final in consecutive years. The other four:
▪ The Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings in 2008 and 2009. The teams split the two Cup Finals, with Detroit winning in 2008 and Pittsburgh winning in 2009.
▪ The Oilers and New York Islanders in 1983 and 1984. They split the two series, with the Islanders winning in 1983 and Edmonton winning in 1984.
▪ The Montreal Canadiens and Boston Bruins in 1977 and 1978. Montreal won both matchups.
▪ Montreal and the St. Louis Blues in 1968 and 1969. Montreal won both matchups.
When will the Stanley Cup Final games be played and what is the television information?
The full schedule is as follows...
▪ Game 1: Wednesday, June 4, 8 p.m., TNT, truTV, Max, Edmonton's Rogers Place
▪ Game 2: Friday, June 6, 8 p.m., TNT, truTV, Max, Edmonton's Rogers Place
▪ Game 3: Monday, June 9, 8 p.m., TNT, truTV, Max, Sunrise's Amerant Bank Arena
▪ Game 4: Thursday, June 12, 8 p.m., TNT, truTV, Max, Sunrise's Amerant Bank Arena
▪ Game 5 (if necessary): Saturday, June 14, 8 p.m., TNT, truTV, Max, Edmonton's Rogers Place
▪ Game 6 (if necessary): Tuesday, June 17, 8 p.m., TNT, truTV, Max, Sunrise's Amerant Bank Arena
▪ Game 7 (if necessary): Friday, June 20, 8 p.m., TNT, truTV, Max, Edmonton's Rogers Place
How did the regular-season series between the Panthers and Oilers unfold?
Florida swept the regular-season series, winning 6-5 on Dec. 16 in Edmonton and 4-3 in Sunrise on Feb. 27.
Who are the players to watch from the Florida Panthers?
▪ Center Aleksander Barkov: Florida's captain has a team-leading 17 points (six goals, 11 assists) and is arguably the top two-way center in the league.
▪ Winger Matthew Tkachuk: Despite clearly playing with a nagging injury sustained during the 4 Nations Face-Off in mid-February, Tkachuk still has 16 points (five goals, 11 assists) and is a menace on the ice.
▪ Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky: The veteran netminder has the second-best goals-against average (2.11) and third-best save percentage (.912) in addition to three shutouts this postseason.
▪ Center Sam Bennett: Bennett leads all skaters this postseason with 10 goals and has 16 points overall.
Who are the players to watch from the Oilers?
▪ Center Connor McDavid: The star center has a postseason-leading 26 points (six goals, 20 assists) through the first three rounds of the playoffs.
▪ Center Leon Draisaitl: The other half of Edmonton's one-two scoring punch with McDavid, Draisaitl has 25 points (seven goals, 18 assists) this postseason
▪ Defenseman Evan Bouchard: Bouchard leads all defensemen this postseason in goals (six), assists (11) and points (17).
▪ Goaltender Stuart Skinner: Prior to Game 5, when he gave up three goals on just 17 shots, Skinner had either been excellent (one goal or fewer in five wins, including three shutouts) or downright putrid (four-plus goals allowed in four losses) in net this postseason. Which version of Skinner shows up in the Final could be the difference.
