The series began on June 4 and concluded on June 17.[1] Edmonton had home ice advantage in the series due to having the better regular season record. This was the sixth consecutive Final to feature a team from Florida. This was the first time since 2009 that the Final featured a rematch of the previous season. It was also the first time since 2012 that neither finalist had home-ice advantage in the first three rounds.
This was Edmonton's second consecutive and ninth overall Final appearance. They have won the Stanley Cup five times, all of which came between 1984 and 1990 during their dynasty years. Their most recent Stanley Cup victory came against the Boston Bruins in 1990, winning in five games.
Edmonton finished third place in the Pacific Division during the regular season with a 48–29–5 record. In the first round, they defeated their intra-division rival, the Los Angeles Kings, in six games, eliminating them for the fourth consecutive season. They then defeated the division champion Vegas Golden Knights in five games during the second round. In the Western Conference final, they triumphed over the Dallas Stars for the second consecutive season, winning in five games.[16]
This was Florida's third consecutive and fourth overall Final appearance. They have won one Stanley Cup, doing so the previous season against the Oilers in seven games after giving up a 3–0 series lead.
Florida finished third place in the Atlantic Division during the regular season with a 47–31–4 record. In the first round, they defeated their intra-state rivals, the Tampa Bay Lightning, in five games. They then defeated the division champion Toronto Maple Leafs in seven games during the second round, despite initially trailing 2–0 in the series. In the Eastern Conference final, they eliminated the Carolina Hurricanes for the second time in three seasons, winning in five games.[25]
Game summaries
Note: The numbers in parentheses represent each player's total goals or assists to that point of the entire playoffs. pp = power play goal, sh = short-handed goal, en = empty net goal
Leon Draisaitl scored two goals in game one, including the overtime winner.
In the first period of game one, Leon Draisaitl began the scoring for the Oilers as Jake Walman's shot was stopped by Florida goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky and Kasperi Kapanen's shot attempts were deflected to Draisaitl who made it 1–0.[26] The Panthers tied the game when Carter Verhaeghe's shot was deflected in front of the net by Sam Bennett.[27] The Oilers tried to challenge the goal on goaltender interference, but they were unsuccessful. In the ensuing power play for the Panthers, Brad Marchand scored to give Florida a 2–1 lead.[28] In the second period, Bennett extended the lead for the Panthers, accepting a pass from Nate Schmidt and snapping the shot past Stuart Skinner.[29]Viktor Arvidsson then scored for Edmonton, firing a slap shot past Bobrovsky to cut Florida's lead to one goal.[30] The Oilers tied the game in the third period as Mattias Ekholm, who had been injured for most of the playoffs returning late in the previous series against Dallas, scored after receiving a pass from Connor McDavid.[31] With the score tied going into overtime, Panthers forward Tomas Nosek was penalized for shooting the puck over the glass. On the ensuing power play, Corey Perry passed to McDavid setting up Draisaitl's goal for Edmonton's 4–3 victory.[32]
Brad Marchand scored two goals in game two, including the overtime winner.
In game two, Evander Kane was penalized for high-sticking Carter Verhaeghe. On the ensuing power play, Sam Bennett scored, taking a pass from Nate Schmidt and Evan Rodrigues.[34] Kane would tie the game 1–1 for Edmonton, firing a snap shot past Sergei Bobrovsky.[35] Defenceman Evan Bouchard would give the Oilers a 2–1 lead as his initial shot was blocked, but his second shot went into the net.[36] The Panthers tied the game as Eetu Luostarinen passed to an open Seth Jones snapping a shot past goaltender Stuart Skinner.[37] The Oilers regained the lead as Connor McDavid skated the puck through a Panther defenceman and passed to Leon Draisaitl who scored to make it 3–2.[38] In the second period, Dmitry Kulikov then evened the score for the Panthers, snapping a shot through traffic to make it 3–3.[39] The Panthers were able to make it 4–3 when Brad Marchand scored a shorthanded breakaway goal.[40] In the final minutes of the third period, the Oilers pulled their goaltender and with 18 seconds remaining, Corey Perry scored to send the game to overtime.[41] In double-overtime, Marchand scored his second of the game in another breakaway, evening the series 1–1.[42]
Carter Verhaeghe recorded the game-winning goal and an assist in game three.
Game three began as game two ended with Brad Marchand scoring 56 seconds into the first period.[44] The Panthers made it 2–0 on the power play as Evan Rodrigues made the pass to Carter Verhaeghe who wristed it past Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner.[45] In the second period, a shot by Evan Bouchard was deflected by Sergei Bobrovsky to Corey Perry who cut the goal deficit for the Oilers to 2–1.[46] Forward Sam Reinhart restored the two-goal lead for Florida, taking the pass from Verhaeghe.[47] The Panthers then made it 4–1 when a two-on-zero rush allowed Sam Bennett to breakaway a wrist a shot past Skinner.[48] In the third period, Skinner attempted to clear the puck but did so over the glass giving Florida a power play. On the ensuing power play, Matthew Tkachuk made a pass to Reinhart who backhand-passed to Aaron Ekblad to make it 5–1.[49] Skinner was pulled after this goal. Midway through the period, the Panthers and Oilers had some fights. By the end of the game, the Oilers accumulated 85 penalty minutes, the most for one team in a Stanley Cup Final game since game four of the 1986 Stanley Cup Final.[50][51] Rodrigues would get the sixth goal for the Panthers, scoring on a two-man advantage.[52][53]
The Oilers came back from a three-goal deficit in game four to emerge victorious in overtime. In the first period, with both Evander Kane and Darnell Nurse in the penalty box for separate infractions, Florida captain Aleksander Barkov off the faceoff passed to Matthew Tkachuk whose snap shot beat Stuart Skinner to make it 1–0.[55] Tkachuk made it 2–0 on another power play, picking up a rebound from Sam Reinhart's shot on Skinner.[56] Towards the end of the first period, Carter Verhaeghe picked up a loose puck in the offensive zone sending it back to Anton Lundell who fired a wrist shot past Skinner.[57] In the second period, the Oilers got on the power play and with Leon Draisaitl's pass to Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Edmonton scored to cut the deficit to two goals.[58] Midway through the second, in the Panthers defensive zone, Mattias Ekholm passed to Darnell Nurse whose shot at a tight angle got past Sergei Bobrovsky to cut the deficit to one goal.[59] The Oilers tied it when Vasily Podkolzin backhand shot the puck past Bobrovsky.[60] In the third period, after the Panthers turned over the puck, Kasperi Kapanen passed to Jake Walman who scored to make it 4–3 for Edmonton.[61] With under a minute left in the third period, the Panthers pulled Bobrovsky for an extra skater. With 20 seconds remaining, Reinhart scored for Florida to send it to overtime.[62] In overtime, Draisatl while holding off a Florida defenceman, made a backhand shot that went between Bobrovsky.[63] He scored his fourth overtime goal of the playoffs, setting the record for most overtime goals scored in one season.[64] He also became the first player since John LeClair in 1993 to score two overtime goals in the same year in the Final.[65][66] It was the seventh time a team came back from a three-goal deficit in the Final and the first since 2006.[67]
In the first period of game five, Brad Marchand, after taking a pass from Anton Lundell, sped through the offensive zone and fired a snap shot past Oilers goaltender Calvin Pickard.[69]Sam Bennett made it 2–0 for Florida, acquiring the puck on a rebound and shooting it past Pickard.[70] In the second period, Marchand, after taking the pass from Eetu Luostarinen, moved the puck between Oilers defenceman Jake Walman to score on Pickard.[71] Edmonton captain Connor McDavid cut the deficit to two goals, scoring a wrist shot on Sergei Bobrovsky to make it 3–1.[72] Less than a minute later, the Panthers answered back as Sam Reinhart made it 4–1 taking the assist from Aleksander Barkov.[73] The Oilers pulled their goaltender with less than four minutes left in the game. With the extra attacker, Corey Perry fired a slap shot that went past Bobrovsky, giving Edmonton their second goal of the game.[74] The Oilers pulled their goaltender again, but with the empty net, Luostarinen scored to give Florida a 5–2 lead, en route to a 3–2 series lead.[75]
In game six, the Panthers began the scoring with Sam Reinhart picking up a defensive turnover by Evan Bouchard and snapping the puck past Stuart Skinner.[77] Florida doubled the lead as Eetu Luostarinen made a pass to Matthew Tkachuk whose wrist shot beat Skinner.[78] In the second period, captain Aleksander Barkov assisted in making it 3–0 for the Panthers as he gathered a rebound off of Skinner's right shoulder and fed Reinhart who was standing near the crease. The puck ultimately deflected off Reinhart's skate and past Skinner to extend the lead.[79] As the end of the game approached, the Oilers pulled their goaltender with less than seven minutes left. However, the Panthers recovered the puck and Reinhart shot into the empty net, scoring a hat trick. He would get his fourth goal of the match, hitting another empty net goal with just over five minutes remaining. Reinhart became the first player since Babe Dye in 1922 and the second player overall in league history to score four goals in a series-clinching game in the Stanley Cup Final. Reinhart also became the first player to score four goals in a Final game since Maurice Richard in 1957. Edmonton would break the shutout as Vasily Podkolzin scored to make it 5–1. The Panthers defended their lead as Sergei Bobrovsky made 28 saves throughout the game, helping Florida earn their second Stanley Cup.[80] Florida became the first team to defeat the same opponent in consecutive Final since the Montreal Canadiens defeated the Boston Bruins in 1978.[80] In addition, they are the third team to win the Stanley Cup without having home ice advantage in any round of the playoffs after the 1994–95 New Jersey Devils and the 2011–12 Los Angeles Kings.[81]
The Stanley Cup was presented to Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov by NHL commissionerGary Bettman following the Panthers' 5–1 win in game six.[85][86]
* Played both centre and wing.
† Did not play or dress in the Final.[a]
‡ Did not automatically qualify,[b] but name still engraved on the Stanley Cup.
Coaching and administrative staff
Vincent Viola (Owner/Chairman/Governor), Teresa Viola (Alternate Governor), John Viola (Alternate Governor), Michael Viola (Alternate Governor)
Travis Viola (Alternate Governor), Matt Caldwell (President/CEO/Alternate Governor), Bill Zito (President of Hockey Operations/General Manager/Alternate Governor), Paul Maurice (Head Coach)
Gregory Campbell (Asst. General Manager), Roberto Luongo (Special Advisor to the General Manager), Sunny Mehta (Asst. General Manager/Head of Analytics), Brett Peterson (Asst. General Manager)
Myles Fee (Asst. Coach), John Congemi (Asst. Video Coach), Dave DiNapoli (Head Athletic Trainer), Teddy Richards (Head Equipment Manager)
Shane Churla (Director, Amateur Scouting)§, Tim Wittenauer (Director of Sports Performance and Rehabilitation)§, Mike Valcy (Massage Therapist)§, Thomas Anderson (Asst. Equipment Manager)§
Dakota King (Asst. Equipment Manager)§, Brian Riedel (Asst. Athletic Trainer)§, Mike Huff (Vice President, Player Engagement)§, Mike Joyce (Head Strength and Conditioning Coach)§
§ Left off the 2024 Stanley Cup title engraving, but included on the 2025 title engraving.[c]
Engraving notes
#8 Nico Sturm (C) played in 15 regular season games and 8 playoff games (all in the first three rounds) for Florida, previously 47 regular season games for San Jose. He was a healthy scratch for the entire Final. He did not automatically qualify,[b][88] but his name was still engraved on the Stanley Cup.[86] He became the first German player in NHL history to have his name engraved on the Stanley Cup with two different teams. He won his first Stanley Cup title with Colorado in 2022.[89]
#6 Jaycob Megna (D – 8 regular season games) and #33 Evan Cormier (G – 0 regular season games, 36 for Savannah of the ECHL) did not play in or dress for the playoffs. Both were on the roster during the Final,[84] but left off the Stanley Cup engraving due to not qualifying.[b] Both were included in the team picture and received championship rings.
Doug Cifu (Vice Chairman/Alternate Governor) was suspended by the NHL in May for the remainder of the playoffs due to comments that the league deemed to be "unacceptable and inappropriate." His name was included on the 2024 title engraving, but left off the engraving for the 2025 title.[90]
Paul Fenton (Senior Advisor to the General Manager), Patric Hornqvist (Scouting and Development Consultant), Rick Dudley (Senior Advisor to the General Manager), Bryan McCabe (Director of Player Personnel), and Braden Birch (Director of Hockey Operations & Salary Cap Management) were on the 2024 Stanley Cup title engraving, but left off the 2025 title engraving to make room for new names on the 2025 engraving. They received championship rings in both seasons.[87]
In the United States, the series was televised on TNT and simulcast on TruTV. This was the first time that the Final was available on Max since the service started streaming TNT Sports-produced NHL telecasts last season.[1][92][93] This was the fourth year of a seven-year deal in which ABC has the Final in even years and TNT has the series in odd years.[94][95]
For the second consecutive year, the Final had an alternate telecast with commentary and analysis in American Sign Language for the benefit of the deaf community. It was available on Sportsnet+ in Canada and Max in the U.S.[96]
^ abcAutomatic qualification for a player's name to be engraved on the Stanley Cup: Playing in (for a goaltender, dressing for) at least one Stanley Cup Final game or at least half of regular season games for the Stanley Cup winning team.
^Mike Valcy (Massage Therapist), Thomas Anderson (Asst. Equipment Manager), Dakota King (Asst. Equipment Manager), and Brian Riedel (Asst. Athletic Trainer) were left off the Stanley Cup engraving of the 2024 title with Florida, but are on the 2025 title engraving, have rings for 2024 and 2025, and were included in the 2024 and 2025 Stanley Cup title pictures. Tim Wittenauer (Director of Sports Performance and Rehabilitation), Shane Churla (Director, Amateur Scouting), Mike Huff (Vice President, Player Engagement), and Mike Joyce (Head Strength and Conditioning Coach) also have rings for 2024 and 2025, were left off the 2024 title engraving, and were included on the 2025 title engraving.[87]
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