The Stanley Cup Finals Return to Florida For Game 6

The Florida Panthers have a shot to win their second consecutive title on home ice Tuesday night in Sunrise. Florida leads the series against the Edmonton Oilers 3-2. The Panthers secured a 5-2 win over the Oilers in Game 5, inching one step closer to the Stanley Cup.

If Florida can pull off a win tonight, it will be the first team to win back-to-back championships since the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2021.

Stage is set for Game 6.#TimeToHunt pic.twitter.com/qiSOKp1BQh

— x – Florida Panthers (@FlaPanthers) June 17, 2025

Playoff Mentality

The Cats went into the playoffs as a No. 3 seed in their division. Despite their regular-season performance, the Panthers came into the postseason ready to defend their crown.

The Panthers got off to a hot start, eliminating the Lightning in the first round, 4-1.

Then, Florida faced Toronto. They came back from a 2-0 deficit to force seven games and advance to the Eastern Conference Finals. There, the Panthers secured a 4-1 series win over the Hurricanes to book their ticket to their third straight Stanley Cup Finals.

Head Coach Paul Maurice spoke about the Panthers’ mentality heading into this postseason:

Key Players

Florida’s Sam Bennett has had a historic playoff run, becoming one of four active players to score 15 goals in an NHL postseason. He is a favorite to win the Conn Smythe Trophy.

Brad Marchand has also performed well. He has scored six goals in this series, the most for a player in a Stanley Cup Final since the eighties. Marchand is also the first player to score more than five goals with multiple teams in the Cup Final.

Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky has served as a brick wall in Florida’s series against Edmonton. He has made 165 saves across the five games.

On the Oilers’ side, Connor McDavid and Corey Perry are players who have made history in the postseason.

After scoring three goals in this series, Perry tied Mark Recchi and Igor Larionov for most goals by a player 40 or older in a single Cup Final.

McDavid is one of the most talented in the game, but has struggled slightly at the hands of Aleksander Barkov. He’s totaled seven points throughout the Finals and will need a monster performance to keep the Oilers alive.

ONE MORE. pic.twitter.com/bSviiwGyIH

— x – Florida Panthers (@FlaPanthers) June 15, 2025

Puck Drop

The Panthers look to start strong and score early. Florida has outscored Edmonton 11-4 in opening periods. However, the Cats have struggled to be consistent throughout the full contest.  The Oilers have outscored Florida in the second and third periods 11-10. In both Edmonton wins, the Oilers returned from multi-goal deficits.

Florida has the opportunity to win its second-ever championship tonight and avoid playing Game 7 in Edmonton.

Puck drop is set for tonight at 8 p.m.