The chase for Lord Stanley’s silver chalice will begin on Saturday.
What a year! We saw history made with Alex Ovechkin breaking Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goal record, the Utah Hockey Club making its NHL debut for its inaugural season, Connor McDavid hitting 1,000 points, Sam Rosen’s retirement tour, Sidney Crosby setting the point/game season record, and plenty more.
The Winnipeg Jets won the Presidents’ Trophy, while Ovechkin and the Caps stormed through the East, and the Montreal Canadiens claimed the final Wild Card spot in a dream run. We get to see a Battle of Ontario for the first time in 21 years, a fourth consecutive year of Edmonton versus Los Angeles, and the Florida Panthers will defend the throne in a Battle of Florida.
With the bracket set, it’s time to expect the unexpected.
Here is the schedule for Round 1 of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs:
#A1 Toronto Maple Leafs vs. #WC1 Ottawa Senators
#A2 Tampa Bay Lightning vs. #A3 Florida Panthers
#M1 Washington Captials vs. #WC2 Montreal Canadiens
#M2 Carolina Hurricanes vs. #M3 New Jersey Devils
#C1 Winnipeg Jets vs. #WC2 St. Louis Blues
#C2 Dallas Stars vs. #C3 Colorado Avalanche
#P1 Vegas Golden Knights vs. #WC1 Minnesota Wild
#P2 Edmonton Oilers vs. #P3 Los Angeles Kings
