Predicting Each Game of the Stanley Cup Finals
In a rematch of the 2024 Stanley Cup Finals, the Florida Panthers will face the Edmonton Oilers to determine the best team in all of the NHL. In 2024’s Stanley Cup Finals, Florida bested the Oilers in a story-filled seven-game series. The last time a Stanley Cup Finals series was a repeat of the prior year it was 2009, when the Pittsburgh Penguins defeated the Detroit Red Wings in seven games after Detroit’s 2008 Stanley Cup Finals win against Pittsburgh. The 2008 series required just six games to determine a victor, as opposed to 2009 and 2024’s seven games each. If history repeats, we’ll see the Edmonton Oilers hoist the Stanley Cup, just like how the Stanley Cup switched hands between 2008 and 2009 despite the two competitors being the same teams. To see if this will happen, one will need to predict the 2025 Stanley Cup Finals by individual game.
Games One and Two of the Stanley Cup Finals are in Edmonton. The Oilers stayed undefeated at home during this year’s Western Conference Finals, but the Panthers stayed undefeated on the road during this year’s Eastern Conference Finals. Throughout the entirety of this year’s NHL Playoffs, Edmonton went 6-1 at home while Florida went 8-2 on the road. Therefore, a reasonable prediction is for Edmonton to win Game One at home and for Florida to win Game Two on the road.
Games Three and Four of the Stanley Cup Finals are in Florida. Florida went 1-1 at home during this year’s Eastern Conference Finals, but the Oilers went 2-1 on the road during this year’s Western Conference Finals. In total, Florida has gone 3-3 at home during the NHL Playoffs while Edmonton went 6-4 on the road. Therefore, a reasonable prediction is for Florida to win Game Three at home and Edmonton to win Game Four on the road. This means that the series will be tied at two wins for each team throughout the first four games of the Stanley Cup Finals.
Game Five of the Stanley Cup Finals is in Edmonton, and Game Six is in Florida. With the Oilers having a slight edge in regards to both their home record and road record during the NHL Playoffs, a reasonable prediction is for Edmonton to win Games Five and Six. This means that Edmonton wins the Stanley Cup in six games, making history and stopping history. History will be made as the first Canadian team to hoist the Stanley Cup since 1993 when the Montreal Canadiens earned the privilege to do so. History will be stopped as Florida will not repeat as champions. The last time the NHL had a repeat champion was in 2021 when Tampa Bay hoisted the Stanley Cup after doing so the previous year. Edmonton will win the Stanley Cup for the first time since 1990. Regardless of who wins, this is sure to be a historic and incredible series featuring two tough teams.
