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🏆 Playoffs
Last updated: June 4, 2025 6:20 AM EDT • 9 min read X Social Google News Link
The Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers face off in the 2025 Stanley Cup Final in a highly-anticipated rematch of last year’s final series. Game 1 is tonight in Edmonton.
Our Panthers vs. Oilers prediction dives into this showdown for hockey supremacy and Lord Stanley’s Cup, including a winner pick and ChatGPT’s take on the series.
We’ve also included our top picks for the Conn Smythe Trophy and leading goal scorer. The Oilers enter the Final as the Stanley Cup odds favorites at the best sports betting sites.
The odds are via our best NHL betting sites and are updated in real time.
They say revenge is best served cold. It doesn’t get much colder for the redemption-seeking Oilers. And if it’s revenge you’re after, you might want to live vicariously through Kris Knoblauch’s team.
I feel more confident about backing the Oilers than I did at this time last year, and here’s why:
The Oilers are 12-2 in their last 14 playoff games, and unlike last season’s showpiece final, they have home-ice advantage.
Yes, the Panthers are a playoff-best 8-2 on the road. However, the Oilers are 6-1 at Rogers Place and have been increasingly dominant in their own barn, spurred on by a raucous and wild fan base ravenous for an end to their 35-year Stanley Cup drought.
The collective is more business-like than ever after learning from last year’s devastating defeat. And I don’t see Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl losing to the same team two years in a row.
Since the Oilers got healthy and addressed their concerns in the opening two games against the Los Angeles Kings, they have been almost unerringly superb.
When they’re not, they find a way to win anyway.
They’ve cut out the defensive mistakes while getting production from the entire cast. Stuart Skinner is playing more like a Conn Smythe Trophy odds favorite than a wild card prone to costly harebrained blunders.
He was arguably the MVP of the Western Conference Final, and if the Oilers receive the same level of performance from him, they will be on top of the hockey world in a couple of weeks.
💡 Stanley Cup Final prediction: Oilers
💰 Best odds: -120 via DraftKings
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Offense: Both offenses can hurt you throughout the lineup at any given moment. The Panthers have scored the most goals per 60 minutes 5-on-5 (3.53) and the third-most goals per game (3.88). All of their defensemen have scored, facilitating a slightly deeper attacking collective.
Paul Maurice’s team became the sixth team in Stanley Cup history to score five or more goals in four consecutive road games, and they were the first team in over 30 years to have 17 unique scorers through the opening 10 games of a postseason.
The Oilers’ numbers are similar as they have the third-most goals per 60 minutes 5-on-5 (3.05) and the most per game overall (4.06). Only one player with at least nine playoff games (Ty Emberson) has not scored.
While Zach Hyman’s absence will be felt, the collective has shown a remarkable ability to step up, including Corey Perry, who has turned back the clock and is the joint leader in goals (7) alongside Draisaitl.
While there’s almost nothing to choose, Draisaitl and McDavid are the X-Factors that push the Oilers over the top. Their ability to foment a decisive moment at the most opportune time is unparalleled.
Defense:
The only reason the Panthers get the nod is their blueline’s ability to contribute offensively. Otherwise, this category is a dead heat, something I never thought I’d say entering the postseason. And with Mattias Ekholm back and on the cusp of sourcing full fitness, the Oilers are arguably even better than the Panthers when excluding offensive contributions.
Edmonton allows 1.89 goals per 60 minutes 5-on-5 compared to the Panthers’ 2.1. The Panthers concede 2.29 goals per game overall, better than the Oilers’ 2.81. However, the Oilers have been better recently, albeit marginally, allowing just 2.10 goals per game since the start of the second round. Compare that to the Panthers’ 2.25.
The Oilers allowed five goals in the previous six wins, three of which via a shutout. Meanwhile, the Panthers conceded nine in their last seven victories.
5-on-5: Another category in which the margin is razor thin. Inarguably, the most elite 5-on-5 teams from these playoffs are the Panthers, with the best goals differential (+19), and the Oilers, with the second-best (+16). Florida has been the most ruthless team in front of the net, with the most goals for above expected (+12).
Way behind the defending champions, Edmonton is a respectable 2.21. The Oilers, however, rule the roost regarding goals against above expected, with -5.64 compared to Florida’s -1.8.
Overall, the Panthers have a goals differential above expected of 14.1, almost seven more than the Oilers’ 7.85. But if you omit the Oilers’ ghastly opening two games of the playoffs, they’d be neck and neck once more. The Panthers get the slim advantage, which Hyman’s absence contributes to.
Special teams: Another best-on-best matchup, with the Panthers’ suffocating and ultra-aggressive penalty kill takes on the Oilers’ formidable power play.
This is one area where home-ice advantage could prove decisive. The Oilers are scoring at an absurd 56.3% efficiency rate on the power play at home, while the Panthers have scored on the man advantage just once in 28 attempts at Amerant Bank Arena (3.6%).
The Oilers penalty kill hasn’t been able to get it together throughout the playoffs, though, running at a subpar 66%. The Panthers, meanwhile, are an exquisite 87.5%.
While Edmonton’s penalty kill will invariably improve on the back of Ekholm’s return, its power play might regress without Hyman. Then again, if Perry continues scoring, the impact of that loss will be less severe.
Thanks to the Oilers home-ice advantage, I’ve given them the marginal advantage.
Goaltending: This category is no longer a decisive no-brainer. Far from it, in fact. Skinner has time and again proven his detractors wrong since he made a triumphant return to the crease in these playoffs.
In five of his six wins, he allowed two goals while securing three shutouts.
He became the fifth goaltender in the modern era to allow just one goal over his first four wins of a postseason. Since the first two games of the playoffs, he’s allowed more than three goals twice, both of which resulted in losses.
Even with Skinner’s sublime recovery, Sergei Bobrovsky is still the better goaltender. That’s not only what his resume and experience say but also the last two playoff runs. Bobrovsky is a Conn Smythe Trophy odds contender, allowing more than two goals once in his previous nine games.
He’s 8-2 in the last 10 games, with a .935 save percentage and 1.57 goals-against average.
That said, the Oilers have a knack for making all-star netminders look ordinary. Just ask Jake Oettinger.
X-Factor: There are no surprises here. While the Panthers have more top-tier players tailor-made for the playoffs, the Oilers have McDavid and Draisaitl. They also have Evan Bouchard on the back end, who is more creative and offensively superior than all of the Panthers’ D-Men combined.
Below stats based on the current playoffs via NHL.com and MoneyPuck.com
We asked ChatGPT, a large language model chatbot from OpenAI, for its best prediction to win the Eastern Conference Final. Please note that ChatGPT is not an experienced bettor but can provide additional information and insights into the tournament and betting markets. This is for entertainment purposes only.
💡 AI Stanley Cup Final prediction: Oilers 4-2
💰 Best odds: +550 via DraftKings
🔬 Deeper Analysis: Why the Oilers Will Win
🧨 1. Connor McDavid is on a Mission
McDavid is averaging 1.69 points per game in the playoffs. His ability to dominate in transition, create off the rush, and break down any defensive structure makes him nearly impossible to game-plan against. In last year’s final, he nearly led a reverse sweep — this year, he’s:
McDavid isn’t just playing to win — he’s playing to cement his legacy.
🦁 2. Oilers have grown since 2024
Last year, the Oilers’ biggest weaknesses were:
In 2025, they’ve patched many of these, most notably improving their depth and ability to score throughout the lineup.
📈 3. Series narrative & hunger
Let’s not overlook the emotional narrative:
This Oilers team has the “we will not be denied” look that Tampa had in 2020.
Conn Smythe odds via our best sports betting apps. Updated in real time.
I’m sure you’re as shocked to see McDavid as my prediction as you’re to hear of another hot and humid day in Florida. McDavid, playing in his 10th NHL season, is steely focused on hoisting the Holy Grail for the first time.
And he will do everything in his power and beyond to make it happen, including otherworldly feats mere mortals are not capable of.
Most generational talents before him, including Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, and Sidney Crosby, didn’t have to wait so long to get their paws on the most coveted piece of silverware.
And it’s noticeable by how he’s playing.
There’s no desperation in his play, just a heightened sense of self-awareness and a business-like, calm demeanor that has manifested into an unstoppable force of momentum and desire.
He leads the playoffs with 26 points, one ahead of Draisaitl. And they both have two game-winning goals. As I’m backing the Oilers to win, it’s one or the other. And you know who I’m betting on.
💡 Conn Smythe prediction: Connor McDavid (+100 via FanDuel)
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All games start at 8 p.m. ET
Game 1: Panthers at Oilers, Wednesday, June 4, 8 p.m. ET 📺/🛜 SN, CBC, TVAS, TNT, truTV, Max
Game 2: Panthers at Oilers, Friday, June 6, 8 p.m. ET 📺/🛜 SN, CBC, TVAS, TNT, truTV, Max
Game 3: Oilers at Panthers, Monday, June 9, 8 p.m. ET 📺/🛜 TNT, truTV, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS
Game 4: Oilers at Panthers, Thursday, June 12, 8 p.m. ET 📺/🛜TNT, truTV, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS
Game 5: Panthers at Oilers, Saturday, June 14, 8 p.m. ET 📺/🛜 SN, CBC, TVAS, TNT, truTV, Max
*Game 6: Oilers at Panthers, Tuesday, June 17, 8 p.m. ET 📺/🛜 TNT, truTV, Max, SN, CBC, TVAS
*Game 7: Panthers at Oilers, Friday, June 20, 8 p.m. ET 📺/🛜 SN, CBC, TVAS, TNT, truTV, Max *
Want to bet on the Stanley Cup playoffs? Check out the best NHL betting sites and best sportsbook promos for today’s games:
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