June 18, 2025
Florida Panthers center Sam Bennett was named the Conn Smythe Trophy winner as the MVP of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs following Tuesday's Cup-clinching 5-1 victory over the Edmonton Oilers. The 28-year-old topped the goal-scoring charts with 15 tallied during the postseason and had 22 points in 23 outings overall. He set a new franchise record for most goals scored during a single playoff campaign and established a new league record with 13 road goals. Bennett's impressive scoring form is likely to earn him a substantial raise for next season as he approaches free agency. He is completing a four-year, $17.7 million deal and is expected to command over $7 million per year for his next contract.
--Taavi PailkSource: ESPN
June 18, 2025
Florida Panthers winger Matthew Tkachuk revealed on Tuesday that he played through multiple injuries to help the team try to lift the Stanley Cup for the second consecutive year. "I tore my adductor off the bone and had some hernia thing all on the same side," Tkachuk said when asked about his injuries. "I wanted to throw in the towel a bunch of times." Despite being badly banged up, Tkachuk enjoyed another prolific postseason run with the Panthers, sharing the team lead in scoring with 23 points. He recorded eight goals and 13 assists. This gives Tkachuk a staggering 69 points (25 goals, 44 assists) over the last three years in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
--Taavi PailkSource: NHL on TNT
June 18, 2025
Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov registered two assists in Tuesday's 5-1 win over the Edmonton Oilers, securing the team's second consecutive Stanley Cup championship. Barkov became the first European captain to lift the Stanley Cup in back-to-back years. He wrapped up the Finals with a three-game point streak and tallied 22 points (six goals, 16 assists) in 23 games overall during the postseason. Panthers head coach Paul Maurice disclosed on Tuesday that one of Barkov's hands was cut open in Game 1 against the Oilers, which could explain the decline in his offensive production at the start of the Finals. Barkov will enter next season as a three-time Selke Trophy winner and aims to average at least a point per game for a sixth consecutive campaign.
--Taavi PailkSource: ESPN
June 18, 2025
Florida Panthers forward Carter Verhaeghe notched three assists as the team secured its second consecutive Stanley Cup with a 5-1 victory over the Edmonton Oilers Tuesday night. Verhaeghe earned all of his assists on goals scored by Sam Reinhart, who had a huge game with four tallies. The three-point night helped Verhaeghe finish as Florida's top scorer for the postseason, sharing the honor with Reinhart and Matthew Tkachuk. All three players posted 23 points, with Verhaeghe reaching the mark by amassing seven goals and 14 assists. The 29-year-old is now a three-time Stanley Cup winner, making him the sixth active player with as many Cup victories.
--Taavi PailkSource: ESPN
June 18, 2025
Florida Panthers forward Sam Reinhart finished Tuesday's Cup-clinching 5-1 victory over the Edmonton Oilers with four goals. He tied the NHL record for most goals in a Finals game and became only the second player to light the lamp four times in a Cup-clinching win. Reinhart was massive for the Panthers against Edmonton, finishing the series with a run of 10 points (seven goals, three assists) in four games. Overall, he contributed 11 goals and 12 assists in 21 outings. On Tuesday, it was revealed that Reinhart missed two postseason games due to a Grade 2 MCL sprain. Reinhart has developed into a deadly forward in Florida and will be in high demand among fantasy managers again during drafts this fall.
--Taavi PailkSource: ESPN
June 17, 2025
Edmonton Oilers defenseman John Klingberg will return to action on Tuesday against the Florida Panthers in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals. The Swedish veteran will rejoin the lineup after being a healthy scratch for the last two games. He will take the place of Troy Stecher, who did not make a significant impact in Games 4 and 5 of the series. Klingberg has generally received praise for his contributions during Edmonton's postseason run, but he's had a bad time in the Finals. In three appearances against the Panthers, Klingberg has recorded a minus-four rating. Throughout the playoffs, he has tallied four points (one goal, three assists) in 18 outings while blocking 31 shots.
--Taavi PailkSource: NHL.com
June 17, 2025
Edmonton Oilers right wing Kasperi Kapanen will re-enter the lineup on Tuesday against the Florida Panthers. Following 11 consecutive appearances, Kapanen was scratched for Saturday's Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Finals. However, he will be brought back into the lineup for Tuesday's elimination game, with Viktor Arvidsson heading to the press box. Kapanen was a healthy scratch on Saturday despite contributing an assist during a 5-4 overtime victory in Game 4 of the series. In total, he has picked up six points (three goals, three assists) in 11 playoff appearances this year. Kapanen will play alongside Leon Draisaitl and Evander Kane on the second line, making him an interesting DFS option on Tuesday.
--Taavi PailkSource: NHL.com
June 17, 2025
Edmonton Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner will start Tuesday's Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals against the Florida Panthers. The 26-year-old returns to the crease after watching Game 5 as the backup to Calvin Pickard. Unfortunately for Edmonton, Pickard stopped only 14 of 18 shots on Saturday in a 5-2 defeat, and the team now faces a battle for survival on Tuesday night. Skinner has allowed at least three goals in each of his last five appearances. He holds a 7-6 record for the playoffs, along with a 2.99 goals-against average and a .891 save percentage. Earlier in the postseason, Skinner had a stretch of three shutouts in four games, and the Oilers need to see that version of him to extend the series.
--Taavi PailkSource: NHL.com
June 15, 2025
Edmonton Oilers right wing Corey Perry matched his postseason career high with his 10th playoff goal of the year in Saturday's 5-2 defeat against the Florida Panthers. He was on target with 3:13 left to play in regulation, cutting the deficit to two goals before Florida iced the game with an empty-netter. Perry turned 40 a month ago, but he has been one of Edmonton's best players since the Western Conference Finals, scoring five goals and seven points in the last seven games. In total, he has managed 14 points (10 goals, four assists) in 21 outings this postseason. Unfortunately for Perry, it now seems likely that he will have to suck up another Stanley Cup Finals defeat, with Edmonton down 3-2 in the series.
--Taavi PailkSource: ESPN
June 15, 2025
Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid scored his first goal of the 2025 Stanley Cup Finals on Saturday, recording the team's first marker in a 5-2 defeat against the Florida Panthers. McDavid is going up against three-time Frank J. Selke Trophy winner Aleksander Barkov in the series and has been limited to only two points in the last three games. He was on fire early in the matchup, bagging five assists across Games 1 and 2. The Oilers now face elimination in Game 6 on the road Tuesday and need a big performance from their key guys, including McDavid, who continues to share the postseason scoring lead with teammate Leon Draisaitl. He has tallied seven goals and 33 points in 21 playoff outings this year.
--Taavi PailkSource: ESPN
June 15, 2025
Florida Panthers center Sam Bennett registered the team's second goal in Saturday's 5-2 victory over the Edmonton Oilers. The 28-year-old scored in a sixth consecutive road playoff game and became the fourth active player to light the lamp at least 15 goals in a postseason, joining Zach Hyman, Alex Ovechkin, and Sidney Crosby. Teams have kept Bennett from scoring only three times over his last 10 outings, and he will head into Tuesday's potential Cup-clincher with a six-game point streak. The Oilers would significantly improve their chances in the series if they could find a way to neutralize Bennett, who is tied with Matthew Tkachuk for the scoring lead on the Panthers squad, having posted 22 points (15 goals, seven assists) in 22 games.
--Taavi PailkSource: ESPN
June 15, 2025
Florida Panthers forward Eetu Luostarinen made his mark with a goal and an assist in Saturday's 5-2 Game 5 victory over the Edmonton Oilers. Luostarinen's helper came early in the third period when Brad Marchand scored the game-winning goal, and the Finnish forward grabbed himself a goal late in the game with the Edmonton net empty. This was Luostarinen's second multi-point effort of the Finals. Overall, he has tallied one goal and four assists against the Oilers. Luostarinen continues to benefit from Brad Marchand's impressive play on Florida's third line. After averaging 0.3 points per game during the regular season, Luostarinen has notched 0.82 points in the playoffs, bagging five goals and 13 assists in 22 appearances.
--Taavi PailkSource: ESPN
June 15, 2025
Florida Panthers left wing Brad Marchand continued his outstanding Finals series against the Edmonton Oilers with a two-goal performance in Saturday's 5-2 win. The veteran forward opened the scoring 9:12 into the game and grabbed the game-winning goal with 5:12 played in the third period. Marchand has now produced six goals against the Oilers; only seven players in NHL history have managed more during the championship series. He is the first player to score at least five goals in two separate Stanley Cup Finals with two different teams. Opponents have struggled against Florida's third line throughout the postseason, and it was another highly effective outing for them, as Marchand combined for five points with Eetu Luostarinen and Anton Lundell. The 37-year-old boasts 10 goals and 20 points in 22 postseason outings overall.
--Taavi PailkSource: ESPN
June 15, 2025
Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 19 of 21 shots in Saturday's 5-2 victory over the Edmonton Oilers in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Finals, tying an NHL postseason record with his 10th road win. Florida became the seventh team to win 10 games away from home during the Stanley Cup Playoffs. It has been a wonderful postseason run for Bobrovsky, who improved to 15-7 on Saturday. He is sporting a 2.27 goals-against average and has logged a .912 save percentage with three shutouts. Bobrovsky and the Panthers now need just one more victory to become only the third team this century to successfully defend their title in the NHL.
--Taavi PailkSource: ESPN
June 14, 2025
Edmonton Oilers left wing Evander Kane will start Saturday's Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Finals against the Florida Panthers on the fourth line. He is being demoted in the lineup following a couple of quiet outings and bad penalties. The power forward has received three minor penalties in the first period over the past two games, amassing a minus-three rating. Kane has previously been ever-present on the second line during the playoffs, posting six goals and 12 points in 19 outings. On Saturday, Leon Draisaitl will be joined on the second line by Vasily Podkolzin and Corey Perry.
--Taavi PailkSource: Tony Brar
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