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Starting Saturday, the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers are set for battle in the 2024 NHL Stanley Cup Final.
The Oilers represent a nation synonymous with hockey which hasn’t seen a Canadian team lift the coveted Cup in over 30 years. The Panthers come into the final seeking redemption after finishing runners-up last season.
In the end, the oldest trophy in North American professional sports history will be handed over to just one team.
Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the best-of-seven series to decide who will lift the famous Stanley Cup.
Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final will take place at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday, June 8, at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Florida.
Fans will be able to keep across the action on ABC, ESPN+, SN, CBC and TVAS.
Riding the hot hand
The Oilers have a chance to do something no Canadian hockey team has done since 1993: win a Stanley Cup.
And in Connor McDavid, they have the perfect figurehead.
The three-time winner of the Hart Trophy, awarded to the NHL’s most valuable player, has been the key driving force in the Oilers’ run to the Stanley Cup Final.
The 27-year-old Canadian scored a goal and assisted on another in the Oilers’ clinching victory in the Western Conference Final over the Dallas Stars. McDavid, widely regarded as the league’s best player, now leads the postseason with 31 points (five goals, 26 assists) in 18 games.
Drafted with the No. 1 overall pick in 2015, this will be McDavid’s first appearance in a Stanley Cup Final.
Now, he has the opportunity to add his name to the Cup, while cementing himself in the history books.
McDavid could become the first player in NHL history with seven 100-point seasons before winning Lord Stanley’s Cup for the first time – he has 982 points (335 goals, 647 assists) in 645 regular-season games.
Tony Gutierrez/AP
McDavid controls the puck during the first period in Game 2 of the Oilers’ Western Conference Final against the Dallas Stars.
McDavid would become the second player in NHL history to win the Cup after having 100 assists in the regular season, joining the legendary Wayne Gretzky who did it four times as Oilers captain.
“There’s been lots of growing pains, for sure, lots of lessons, and obviously, it feels great to be in this position,” McDavid said. “This was always part of the plan, and it feels good to be here today.”
Edmonton is playing in its first Final since 2006 and is hoping to lift the prized trophy for the first time since 1990 and its sixth overall.
Long gone are the glory years with Gretzky at the helm leading the Oilers to multiple titles, but McDavid and Co. are hoping to bring back some of those positive feelings.
“As far as the way we play, it’s a different style than [the Panthers],” Oilers forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins said. “Every series is different. They’re fast-paced, physical, have a good power play. We’ll obviously take some time here to have a look at their game. We only saw them twice and it was probably not our two best games that we played against them.”
Codie McLachlan/Getty Images
Mattias Ekholm celebrates with teammates after a goal during the first period against the Vancouver Canucks.
For the Panthers, it is a case of redemption.
Having lost to the Vegas Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup Final last season, Florida has managed to make it back to the sport’s marquee event and will be hoping to go one step further.
They are the sixth team in the NHL’s expansion era which began in 1967-68 to return to the Stanley Cup Final after losing in the championship round the previous season. Florida has never lifted the sought-after trophy.
The Panthers struggled with injuries as their playoff run went on last season, but this time around, they are much healthier and are looking to finally become NHL champions.
“Obviously, it’s going to be a challenge,” Panthers forward Carter Verhaeghe said.
“They have some pretty special players over there and definitely going to embrace it. I think any time you go against some of the best players in the world, it’s always fun and challenging. … So it’s going to be a good series, I think.”
Led by their captain Aleksander Barkov, the Panthers defeated the New York Rangers in the Eastern Conference Final to book their spot in the final.
Joel Auerbach/Getty Images
Carter Verhaeghe celebrates after a scoring a goal for the Panthers against the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 5 of the first round of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
One man who knows about facing Edmonton in high-pressure scenarios is Matthew Tkachuk, who played for the Oilers’ bitter rivals, the Calgary Flames, for six seasons.
Tkachuk faced the Oilers 28 times while with the Flames in a rivalry dubbed the ‘Battle of Alberta.’
And the 26-year-old says it will take a group effort to overcome Edmonton.
“We’ve got guys that can skate, just like them,” he said. “McDavid’s probably the fastest guy in the world, so got to be on the right side of him. If you’re even or behind him, he’s going to beat you, so we’ve got to be in front of him at all times and have layers of support.”
Game 1: Oilers at Panthers – June 8, 8 p.m. ET
Game 2: Oilers at Panthers – June 10, 8 p.m. ET
Game 3: Panthers at Oilers – June 13, 8 p.m. ET
Game 4: Panthers at Oilers – June 15, 8 p.m. ET
(If needed) Game 5: Oilers at Panthers – June 18, 8 p.m. ET
(If needed) Game 6: Panthers at Oilers – June 21, 8 p.m. ET
(If needed) Game 7: Oilers at Panthers – June 24, 8 p.m. ET
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