The Stanley Cup Finals Just Made History

The Stanley Cup Finals Just Made History

the Stanley Cup final just ended and it didn’t really feel like much of a final the Florida Panthers didn’t just win the series they controlled it they smothered the Oilers shut down McDavid and made Edmonton’s highpowered offense look completely powerless sure it technically went six games but let’s be honest this was a mismatch from the jump the Panthers were faster they were smarter nastier and tougher in every zone and now they’ve done what only the great teams do they finished the job again two cups in two years three straight trips to the final it’s not a fluke anymore it’s a blueprint to a dynasty they didn’t just build a contender they built a machine and while they were hoisting the cup Conor McDavid was left staring into space for the second year in a row still ringless still empty-handed still somehow chasing something that’s always just out of reach but before we talk legacy before we talk dynasties heartbreak or what comes next let’s rewind and take a look back at how everything unfolded in game six bobby Lou got us hyped up banging the drum and the puck was dropped for game six the cup was in the building and it was a chance for Florida to win the cup on home ice for the second year in a row and right away it was the Oilers on the prowl and you knew they would come out hungry this game they had some good looks early putting the puck towards the net and testing Bob but it would be the Panthers to strike first for the fifth time this series reinhardt pounced on a brutal turnover by Bousard then pulled off a filthy windmill move on Ekholm looking like Marshian from game five and as he drove in and got tripped he still managed to rip it far glove side on Skinner putting the Cats up one- nothing bad awareness by Bousard ekholm took the puck and not the body and Reinhardt made an amazing individual effort to go backhand forehand and get a shot off while falling skinner he didn’t seem phased though he made a nice save just 30 seconds later to settle things down and Bob held his own at the other end battling through a tense four-on- four stretch the pressure kept building on both sides and the goalies were sharp each making huge saves but with under a minute left another awful turnover by Bousard led to an attack by the Panthers lucer and Drew McDavid over to him opening up Kachchuck who let a shot go from the top of the slot finding the back of the net a perfect screen by Lundell let Kachchuck go far side two nothing Florida and for the third game in a row the Panthers have a multi-goal lead leaving the first period even though the Oilers were in a hole again they didn’t let off the pressure they actually looked pretty good the Panthers though they didn’t let off the gas either and it was pretty much back and forth for the entire second period then with 2 minutes left Verhiggy turned and just threw a puck on net skinner turned it aside and laid it down perfectly for Bararkov who sled it to Reinard to make it three nothing horrible rebound control here by Skinner nurse just let Rhynold walk to the blue paint and that’s a recipe for disaster and now the Oilers have themselves an even bigger hole to climb out of going into the third period stu stayed strong though after a bad goal and he did everything he could to keep the Oilers in this game with some huge saves but down by three goals Knoblock decided to pull the goalie for an extra attacker with 7 minutes left throwing everything he had at the Panthers but they quickly broke out moving the puck from Verhigi to Bararkov to Reinhardt who buried it into the empty net to complete his hat-tick then just two minutes later he scored again on the empty net his fourth goal of the game becoming the first player since Maurice Rashard back in 1957 to hit four goals in a Stanley Cup final game but Coulson put in a sympathy goal for the Oilers but this one was over the Florida Panthers are the 2025 Stanley Cup champions going back to back the first team to do so and winning both on home ice since the8s Boston Bruins so are the Panthers a dynasty now three straight finals appearances and two cups in a row that’s pretty impressive any way you look at it honestly I think their run might even be a little bit better than Tampa’s recent stretch tampa was a great team but Florida’s done it with a mix of skill toughness and consistency that’s really hard to ignore the kind of sustained success is pretty rare in the NHL these days and now calling them a dynasty it might be a little bit early sometimes that word gets thrown around too loosely and I don’t think the Panthers have it just yet but they’re definitely building something serious it’s crazy how quickly they went from being an afterthought of a team to a team everyone’s watching whether or not you want to label them a dynasty yet there’s no question they’re one of the best teams the league has ever seen and they’re here to stay for a while a huge part of Floor’s dominance has been their sheer talent and depth of their roster sam Reinhardt he’s turned into a playoff killer he scored the cup clenching goal last year and then followed it up this year with a four-goal masterpiece matthew Kachchuck once again showed why he’s the ultimate playoff warrior he put up six points in the final four games of the series and he made an impact every single time he stepped on the ice sam Bennett led the league in goals and walked away with the K smite this year tearing through defenses and dragging defenders with him shift after shift on the back end Gustaf Forsen quietly shut down McDavid for most of the final logging huge minutes and making it look effortless and then there’s Carter HGY who somehow keeps showing up in the biggest moments florida doesn’t just have stars they have clutch stars and that’s what separates them from the pack and the crazy part we’ve gotten this far without even mentioning Alexander Barov or Sergey Babski two guys who just locked in their Hall of Fame ballots with this run bararkov has been the quiet backbone of this team for years but on this stage his two-way dominance was impossible to ignore it he shut down top lines won critical faceoffs and still found ways to produce offensively the guy does everything bob has been the steady presence in net for three straight years now delivering consistent play and coming up clutch in the biggest moments but if you want to talk about great players in this run you have to mention Brad Marshand his trade deadline pickup might go down as one of the greatest pickups in NHL history i still have no idea how this trade went through he put up 20 points in 23 playoff games including six goals in the final alone marshian brought more of exactly what this Panthers team is experience grit and a relentless style that wears teams down he blended right into Florida’s lineup and made them an even harder team to play against for the Oilers though this loss stings and it puts them in a tough spot heading into the offseason they’ve now become the first team since the late ‘7s Bruins to lose back-to-back Stanley Cup finals and that’s not the kind of history anyone wants to be a part of conor McDavid was once again brilliant in all playoffs but the conversation around his legacy is starting to shift he’s entering the final year of his contract and there’s a real chance he looks to extend his contract this summer but another missed opportunity like this will only add pressure cory Perry meanwhile made his own kind of history as he has now lost five of the last six Stanley Cup finals a bizarre and brutal stat for a guy who’s seen it all and then there’s Stuart Skinner he had flashes but his inconsistency on the biggest stage might force Edmonton to take a hard look at their goalending situation this team is too talented to keep falling short but something clearly has to change the Florida Panthers are Stanley Cup champions again and this time there’s no doubt about who the better team was as they celebrated on home ice hoisting the cup for the second year in a row the Oilers were left with the same empty feeling they had last June for Florida this wasn’t just a win it was a statement they’ve become everything teams try to build deep disciplined relentless when it matters most it’s not just one magical run it’s sustained measured dominance for Edmonton it is back to the drawing board yet again questions about their core their goalending their ability to finish they’re all back on the table but for now this moment belongs to the Panthers two cups in two years three finals in a row a team that used to be overlooked has become the standard whatever comes next this run will not be forgotten very much is a real feeling it always is and it never it never gets old and you it’s just you can pinch yourself but you just like skating around with the cup like you just don’t like how lucky are we it’s amazing

The Florida Panthers have done it again. Two Cups. Three Finals. And a Game 6 that left no doubt, this is a team built for greatness. While the Panthers celebrated a back-to-back championship on home ice, the Oilers were left broken once more. This wasn’t just a win. It was a coronation. Let’s break down how it all went down.

twitter – https://x.com/hectichockey
instagram – https://www.instagram.com/hectichockey