* The 2025 Stanley Cup Final has left fans tapping their hearts from all the excitement after three overtime games, the series’ first three-goal comeback win by a road team in 106 years and two contests with a tying goal in the final 20 seconds of regulation – the latter being a first-of-its-kind feat during the championship round.
* Either the Oilers or Panthers will move within one victory of a title tonight (8 p.m. ET on TNT, Max, truTV, Sportsnet, CBC & TVAS). The winner of Game 5 in a best-of-seven Final that was tied 2-2 goes on to capture the Cup nearly 75% of the time.
* NHL in ASL returned for the Final and captured some big moments through the first four games. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman is set to join the telecast on Max (U.S.) and Sportsnet+ (Canada) tonight.
STANLEY CUP FINAL AND TEAM TRENDS TO MONITOR IN GAME 5
Familiarity appears to be breeding overtime as the Panthers and Oilers have decided three of four games in OT after settling the score in regulation in all seven games last year. It has been 74 years since a Final had more than three overtime games - in fact, only one championship series has had more than three (1951: all 5). A few other trends and record paces to monitor in Game 5 (more can be found in Saturday’s edition of Live Updates):
* The Oilers return home (where they are 7-2) after setting and tying franchise records for overtime wins (5) and comeback wins (8) in one playoff year, respectively, on Thursday. Game 4 also was their fourth multi-goal comeback win of 2025, the most by any club since the 2017 Ducks (4) and one shy of the NHL record held by the 1987 Flyers (5).
* The Panthers (9-3 as visitors) head to Edmonton looking to match the NHL record for road wins in one playoff year so they can head home with a chance to clinch a second straight Stanley Cup in front of their fans in Sunrise. The Panthers already own the NHL record for most road goals by a team in one playoff year (56; set during Game 1 at EDM) and with 84 goals overall in 2025 are among the top 20 highest-scoring teams in Stanley Cup Playoffs history.
GAME 5 WILL PUT OILERS OR PANTHERS WITHIN A WIN OF STANLEY CUP
A franchise or NHL record has fallen in every game of the Stanley Cup Final so far (reminders from Game 1, Game 2, Game 3 and Game 4), with either the Oilers or Panthers poised to move within one victory of a championship Saturday (8 p.m. ET on TNT, Max, truTV, Sportsnet, CBC & TVAS).
* The clubs will treat hockey fans to at least two more games, with the potential of a second straight Game 7 meeting on the table (more on that in the “NHL on ASL” section below). This is the first time since 2019 and 27th time overall that a best-of-seven Stanley Cup Final has been tied 2-2 through Game 4. A look at the historical relevance of Game 5 in a tied best-of-seven series is below.
How does the winner of Game 5 fare when a best-of-seven is tied 2-2?
This is the 301st best-of-seven series to be tied 2-2. In the 300 prior matchups, the winner of Game 5 claimed the series 79% of the time (238-62; .793). Looking specifically at the Stanley Cup Final, the Game 5 victors in that scenario go on to hoist the Cup 73% of the time (19-7; .731).
Does the historic edge go to the home or road team in Game 5 in a 2-2 best-of-seven?
When any best-of-seven is tied 2-2, Game 5 has been won by the home team 62% of the time (186-114; .620) – with a slight uptick to 69% in the Stanley Cup Final (18-8; .692).
How have 2-2 best-of-seven series played out for each side after Game 5?
81% of teams that won Game 5 at home in a 2-2 best-of-seven went on to claim the series (150 of 186), including 83% of clubs that did so in the Final (15 of 18). Contrarily, 77% of teams that won Game 5 on the road to break a 2-2 tie claimed the series (88 of 114), including half of the clubs that did so in the Final (4 of 8).
How have things played out for the Oilers and Panthers after being tied 2-2?
This is the first time either club has found itself in a 2-2 series during the Stanley Cup Final, but both have had turned out successful results in Game 5 and in the series during other rounds.
* Edmonton is 10-7 in Game 5 of a 2-2 best-of-seven series (4-2 at home). They have a 12-5 series record when tied 2-2 (regardless of Game 5 result), including a 5-1 series record when starting at home.
* Florida is 5-2 in Game 5 of a 2-2 best-of-seven series (3-1 on road). They have a 5-2 series record when tied 2-2 (regardless of Game 5 result), including a 4-0 series record when starting on the road.
Which teams have lost Game 5 of a 2-2 Final but won the Cup?
Seven teams have rallied from a Game 5 defeat in a deadlocked Final to hoist the Cup, with the two most recent instances having ties to the 2025 Final: Panthers forward Brad Marchand was a rookie with the 2011 Bruins when they accomplished the feat, and the last Stanley Cup Final rematch ended in dramatic fashion as Sidney Crosby helped rally the 2009 Penguins past the Red Wings to claim a split of their back-to-back championship battles.
THE SERIES SO FAR, AS SEEN ON ‘NHL IN ASL’
For the second straight year, NHL in ASL, an alternate telecast produced by the NHL in partnership with P-X-P, is broadcasting every game of the Stanley Cup Final. Also for the second straight year, the Panthers and Oilers are delivering dramatic moments and historic achievements – with viewers on Max (U.S.) and Sportsnet+ (Canada) witnessing history on a medium dedicated completely to the Deaf and hard of hearing community using American Sign Language. A selection of some of the history captured on the telecasts so far:
* Carter Verhaeghe scored the first goal captured on an NHL in ASL broadcast, the game-winner in a Game 1 shutout for Florida last year.
* NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman joined “NHL in ASL” ahead of Game 4 last year, which was an 8-1 home-ice victory in Edmonton that triggered a historic rally to force a Game 7. Commissioner Bettman will again join the NHL in ASL telecast during the first intermission of Game 5 tonight in Edmonton.
* In Game 6 last June, NHL in ASL captured the moment when Zach Hyman scored his League-leading 16th goal of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs to set a new benchmark for most goals in one playoff year by an active player – with Panthers forward Sam Bennett (14) now just two shy of that mark this year. The NHL in ASL telecasts in 2025 have captured three straight record-setting performances by Bennett, in Game 1 (franchise-record 12th goal of these playoffs), Game 2 (NHL-record 12th road goal of the postseason) and Game 3 (franchise-record four-game goal streak).
* The Panthers’ first-ever Cup lift also was the first captured on “NHL in ASL”, secured with a Game 7 triumph to end the Oilers’ attempted comeback from a 3-0 series deficit. If the teams skate the distance again, the alt cast would capture the first time in 70 years that a Stanley Cup Final rematch goes to Game 7 each time. Overall, there have been only three stretches of consecutive Game 7s in the Stanley Cup Final including one involving a rematch: 1954 and 1955 (DET defeated MTL in each) as well as two different matchups from 1964 to 1965 and three from 2003 to 2006.
* So far in 2025, “NHL in ASL” viewers have witnessed 32 goals, five lead changes, 12 go-ahead goals and eight tying tallies – including the two latest tying goals in Stanley Cup Final history, by Corey Perry (59:42) in Game 2 and Sam Reinhart (59:40) in Game 4 – as well as three overtimes tallies (a first through four games of a Final in a dozen years). Draisaitl has two of those OT markers, including the first-ever playoff overtime goal captured on “NHL in ASL” in Game 1 and his NHL record-setting tally in Game 4.
More NHL.com stories from the 2025 Stanley Cup Final
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