What we learned from Panthers and Oilers’ first two Stanley Cup Final games

After a thrilling, double-overtime victory over the Edmonton Oilers in Game 2, the Florida Panthers return to South Florida with the Stanley Cup Final tied at one win each.

Florida and Edmonton have played more than eight full periods of hockey in two games and can barely be separated by a razor’s edge. This series seems destined to go six or seven games with little margin for error from either team.

Here are five things we have learned from the first two games of a wild Stanley Cup Final:

The ‘Rat King’ provides the juice — and ice cream

Panthers players have credited newcomers to the team for providing energy and motivation after most of the team won a Stanley Cup last year. But Florida nemesis-turned-icon Brad Marchand has not only endeared himself to this team and its fans. He has become one of the Panthers’ most important players in the postseason.

Marchand has seven goals and 10 assists in the playoffs. He is second on the team — and among playoff skaters — with a plus-14, trailing only linemate Anton Lundell.

Marchand had his biggest moment as a Panther (so far) on Friday, scoring a short-handed goal in the second period that looked like it would hold up as the game-winner until Corey Perry’s late goal sent the game to overtime. Marchand then scored the game-winner in double overtime. The veteran was the top skater in Game 2, according to the hockey analytics site Hockey Stat Cards.

Top skater from tonights game, Brad Marchand pic.twitter.com/CYaI48KlBd

— HockeyStatCards (@hockeystatcards) June 7, 2025

But it is not just the stats and production. Marchand has helped invigorate the team. Although he is the oldest player on the roster, he brings a fun vibe to the team and has become part of multiple new traditions — from teammates firing rubber rats at him after home wins to off-day trips to Dairy Queen.

‘McDrai’ is otherworldly

Edmonton has something no other NHL team can claim: the best hockey player in the world. Connor McDavid is widely viewed as the league’s top player, and he has shown why. The 28-year-old center leads all players with 31 playoff points, and his most recent one might be the best of the bunch.

McDavid made skating through Selke Trophy winner Aleksander Barkov and top defenseman Aaron Ekblad look easy before dishing a perfect pass to Leon Draisaitl, who scored.

Connor McDavid is poetry in motion pic.twitter.com/67WAqMUVm3

— Brady Trettenero (@BradyTrett) June 7, 2025

Draisaitl, the league’s leading goal-scorer, is no slouch himself. After being kept out of the net in last year’s Final, he has three goals in two games, including the Game 1 winner.

The pair of stars have played a huge role through two games for the Oilers.

Florida needs its stars

The Panthers’ depth has been its strength throughout the playoffs, and the first two games of the Final have been no different.

Sam Bennett, Seth Jones, Nate Schmidt, Marchand and others have played well in the first two games. But so far, some of Florida’s biggest stars have been kept off the score sheet. Barkov has no goals or assists and a -5 rating. Sam Reinhart has no goals and no assists and a -3; he also missed a potential game-winning breakaway in overtime. Matthew Tkachuk has one assist and a plus-minus of zero.

Florida needed its stars to get to the Stanley Cup Final. The Panthers need them to lift the Cup again. But coach Paul Maurice said he is not concerned when asked about Barkov and Reinhart on Saturday.

“I understand the question because the plus-minus isn’t kind to the game that they play,” Maurice said. “But (Barkov is) outstanding in what he’s doing.”

Gustav Forsling puts it all on the line

Forsling has been one of Panthers general manager Bill Zito’s top pick-ups. Florida claimed him on waivers in 2021, and the Panthers have developed Forsling into a top defender.

After a poor Game 1 where Hockey Stat Cards gave him the lowest game score of any Florida skater, Forsling rebounded in Game 2. He had a solid 2.21 game score and had numerous important blocks and break-ups, including one where he was on his stomach and poke-checked a puck away from a threatening Evander Kane.

Gustav Forsling putting on a CLINIC tonight 🔒 pic.twitter.com/GAEdZiXPjW

— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) June 7, 2025

Stuart Skinner is locked in

The Edmonton goalie had a shaky start to the postseason and was even benched in the Oilers’ first series. But the netminder is locked in now.

Skinner surrendered five goals over four and a half periods of hockey, but two of them were on breakaways. He kept the Oilers in the game when the Panthers were peppering him with shots. He made eight saves on 10 high-danger attempts, according to Natural Stat Trick.