The 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs are still ongoing, and we are close to the entire bracket for the second-round to be set. There has already been some great moments, and hockey fans have been happy with the play on the ice.
Entering the playoffs, former NHL star Wayne Gretzky made his prediction for the Stanley Cup Finals. The Great One predicted that the Tampa Bay Lightning to come out of the Eastern Conference while the Edmonton Oilers would come out of the Western Conference.
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Unfortuany for Gretzky, his prediction won’t be coming true this year. The Lightning fell to the Florida Panthers in the first round of the playoffs, with Florida utterly dominating them over five games.
However, his pick of the Oilers remains very much alive after Edmonton advanced to the second round. Things looked a little shaky for a minute with the Oilers as they were down 0-2 in their series against the Los Angeles Kings.
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But the reigning Western Conference champions showed their poise, eventually winning four straight games over Los Angeles. Edmonton is looking to get back to the Stanley Cup Finals, a place where they fell just short of winning another title last season.
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Even with the prediction from Gretzky falling short, he still showed a lot of heart in picking it. The Lightning were underdogs entering the series with the Panthers, and it was a bold prediction from the former star.
It remains to be seen if the Oilers can at least get back to the Stanley Cup Final, but if they do, at least the former star will have been half correct.
Related: Wayne Gretzky Predicts 2025 Stanley Cup Final Matchup