It all comes down to this.
For the second straight year, the Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers will meet in the Stanley Cup Final for a chance to hoist hockey’s ultimate prize.
“You think about it all summer,” forward Matthew Tkachuk said of the Cup Final. “You think about this moment of getting back and the chance to compete. It’s so hard to (get there) and very few players are able to get a chance at one even. If you would’ve asked both of us (Florida and Edmonton) in the middle of the summer we’d have a chance to play for a Stanley Cup rematch, we would both race to sign that paper.”
Hoping to repeat last year’s results, the Panthers grabbed their first ever Stanley Cup in a seven-game classic in their previous battle with the Oilers.
Setting up for another showdown, the storylines build as the Panthers look to become the tenth team to repeat to win the Cup in back-to-back seasons, and as Edmonton’s dynamic duo of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl push for their first.
Here is everything you need to know ahead of the Stanley Cup Final matchup.
THE PLAYOFF BASICS
Panthers (3A): 12-5 | 4-1 over Lightning in Round 1, 4-3 over Maple Leafs in Round 2, 4-1 over Hurricanes in Eastern Conference Final
Oilers (3P): 12-4 | 4-2 over Kings in Round 1, 4-1 over Golden Knights in Round 2, 4-1 over Stars in Western Conference Final
Offense: FLA: 3.88 GF/GP; 23.2% PP | EDM: 4.06 GF/GP; 30.0% PP
Defense: FLA: 2.29 GA/GP; 87.9% PK | EDM: 1.80 GA/GP; 66.0% PK
PLAYOFF ADVANCED NUMBERS (5-ON-5)
Panthers: 53.73 CF%, 62.67 GF%, 54.96 xGF%, 53.08 HDCF%
Oilers: 51.88 CF%, 61.76 GF%, 54.42 xGF%, 56.84 HDCF%
PLAYOFF LEADING SCORERS
Panthers: Aleksander Barkov (six goals, 11 assists), Sam Bennett (10 goals, six assists), Matthew Tkachuk (five goals, 11 assists), Brad Marchand (four goals, 10 assists), Carter Verhaeghe (six goals, eight assists)
Oilers: Connor McDavid (six goals, 20 assists), Leon Draisaitl (seven goals, 18 assists), Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (five goals, 13 assists), Evan Buchard (six goals, 11 assists), Evander Kane (five goals, six assists)
Breakdown: It should come as no surprise that these two teams made the Final once again, with the star power and depth on both sides. Through three rounds, both the Panthers and Oilers have seen goals from 19 different players. With each captain leading the way in points, along with the forwards in each top-six, the depth scorers could decide this series. Having season-ending surgery after a hit in the Western Conference Final, the Oilers will be without Zach Hyman, who had recorded 11 points (five goals, six assists) in 15 games.
PLAYOFF GOALIE MATCHUP
Panthers: Sergei Bobrovsky (12-5, 2.11 GAA, .912 SV%)
Oilers: Stuart Skinner (6-4, 2.53 GAA, .904 SV%)
Breakdown: Showing his incredible conditioning, Bobrovsky has gotten better with each round. Going 4-1 in the Eastern Conference Final against the Hurricanes, No. 72 posted a .935 save percentage, 1.69 goals-against average and one shutout. In the series win, the Panthers netminder had just one game below a .920 save percentage. Up north, it has been a tale of two playoffs for Skinner. In his first six games, Skinner allowed four goals four times and posted two shutouts. Heating up though in the Western Conference Final against the Stars, Skinner posted a .924 save percentage, 2.01 goals-against average and one shutout while going 4-1.
PLAYOFF X-FACTOR
Panthers: Fighting fire with fire. Going against one of the league’s best power plays, the Panthers have plenty of firepower of their own. Finding the back of the net three times each, Bennett, Tkachuk and Verhaeghe rank first on the Panthers in power-play goals. Not the only ones contributing on the man advantage, the Panthers have had six different players score at least one goal with the extra attacker on the ice. Not afraid on the road, the Panthers have a league-best 42.9% power play away from home these playoffs.
Oilers: How well the Oilers penalty kill plays could be an indicator of how the series goes. One of the NHL’s best home penalty kills during the 2025 playoffs, the Oilers own an 83.3% success rate while at Rogers Place. On the flip side, their 55.2% kill on the road ranks last (among teams that played more than one round). Against the Stars, the Oilers allowed five power play goals in 14 opportunities.
REGULAR SEASON
If the regular season provides any indication of what the Stanley Cup Final could be, fans will need to buckle up.
A pair of one-goal contests, the Panthers took both games against the Oilers in the regular season.
On the road, a late third period goal from Verhaeghe gave the Panthers a 6-5 win at Rogers Place on Dec. 16.
Meeting again at Amerant Bank Arena on Feb. 27, the Panthers earned a 4-3 win behind a pair of goals from Nate Schmidt and Verhaeghe.
In the win, Anton Lundell put up a three-point (goal, two assists) performance.
"Both teams are deeper this year," head coach Paul Maurice said. "So, that's a change for them, for us. I think they are further along in their defensive structure and we're actually a little further along in our offensive structure. When you look at the strengths clearly last year, you'd say their offensive game was elite. They put up eight on us one night, so they can score some goals, but our defensive structure's pretty good too.”
EASTERN CONFERENCE FINAL SCHEDULE
Game 1 | Wednesday, June 4 | Florida Panthers at Edmonton Oilers | 8 p.m. (ET) | Rogers Place | TNT, truTV, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS
Game 2 | Friday, June 6 | Florida Panthers at Edmonton Oilers | 8 p.m. (ET) | Rogers Place | TNT, truTV, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS
Game 3 | Monday, June 9 | Florida Panthers vs. Edmonton Oilers | 8 p.m. (ET) | Amerant Bank Arena | TNT, truTV, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS
Game 4 | Thursday, June 12 | Florida Panthers vs. Edmonton Oilers | 8 p.m. (ET) | Amerant Bank Arena | TNT, truTV, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS
*Game 5 | Saturday, June 14 | Florida Panthers at Edmonton Oilers | 8 p.m. (ET) | Rogers Place | TNT, truTV, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS
*Game 6 | Tuesday, June 17 | Florida Panthers vs. Edmonton Oilers | 8 p.m. (ET) | Amerant Bank Arena | TNT, truTV, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS
*Game 7 | Friday, June 20 | Florida Panthers at Edmonton Oilers | 8 p.m. (ET) | Rogers Place | TNT, truTV, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS
* If necessary
KEY QUOTES
“Going in there, it was one of the loudest buildings I’ve ever played in. It gets really loud in there when they’re buzzing around in their own arena. It’s a really cool environment to play in. We’re just really excited. Last year gives us some experience.” – Carter Verhaeghe on knowing what to expect at Rogers Place
“Us against the world, it’s that kind of feeling,” – Gustav Forsling on the team’s mentality
“It’s exciting. You hope that you get to this point. Obviously, we have a great and we’ve played well so far. We’ve got to the point where we want to be, but we haven’t accomplished anything yet.” – Brad Marchand on reaching Cup Final
PANTHERS PROJECTED LINEUP (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
Forwards
Evan Rodrigues – Aleksander Barkov – Sam Reinhart
Carter Verhaeghe – Sam Bennett – Matthew Tkachuk
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Brad Marchand
Jesper Boqvist – Tomas Nosek – Jonah Gadjovich
Defensemen
Gustav Forsling – Aaron Ekblad
Niko Mikkola – Seth Jones
Nate Schmidt – Dmitry Kulikov
Goaltenders
Sergei Bobrovsky
Vitek Vanecek
OILERS PROJECTED LINEUP (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
Forwards
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – Connor McDavid – Corey Perry
Evander Kane – Leon Draisaitl – Kasperi Kapanen
Vasily Podkolzin – Mattias Janmark – Viktor Arvidsson
Jeff Skinner – Adam Henrique – Trent Frederic
Defensemen
Mattias Ekholm – Evan Bouchard
Darnell Nurse – Brett Kulak
Jake Walman – John Klingberg
Goaltenders
Stuart Skinner
Calvin Pickard
