Florida Panthers repeat as NHL Stanley Cup champions after beating Edmonton Oilers in 6 games

Lord Stanley's stay in Florida has been extended.

The Florida Panthers repeated as National Hockey League champions after beating the Edmonton Oilers 5-1 in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final at home on Tuesday, becoming the NHL's first back-to-back winners since Tampa Bay in 2020 and 2021, as well as the third team to pull off a repeat this century.

Sam Reinhart scored four goals, becoming just the sixth player in league history and first since Maurice Richard in 1957 to tally that many in a game in the Final. His third, completing a hat trick, sent (stuffed and plastic) rats, along with hats, flying onto the ice. Matthew Tkachuk, one of the faces of the franchise, fittingly scored the Stanley Cup clincher.

More rats were part of the victory celebration when the clock expired. Panthers players celebrated in the corner, while Edmonton watched in dismay.

"Good evening, South Florida," NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said before presenting the trophy to captain Aleksander Barkov. "It feels like we just did this."

Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 28 of the 29 shots he faced, closing the door on a rematch that ended with the same result. The only goal for the Oilers came from Russian compatriot Vasily Podkolzin in the closing minutes, long after the outcome had been decided.

Time ticked down as the crowd chanted "We want the Cup!" The Panthers already had it. Now they get to keep it.

"This is as good as the first one," Reinhart said. "We learned some lessons. We stayed on the gas, foot on the pedal, and obviously the result speaks for itself."

Not long after the Tampa Bay Lightning made three straight trips to the final, Florida has done the same, showing the makings of a modern-day dynasty. The Panthers have won 11 of 12 playoff series since Tkachuk arrived via trade and Paul Maurice took over as coach in the summer of 2022.

"We've got to be a dynasty now," Tkachuk said. "Three years in a row finals, two championships. This is a special group."

The only time they have been on the wrong side of a handshake line after a Final was in Las Vegas in 2023, with several key players banged up and trying to gut their way through significant injuries.

From the core of Tkachuk, Reinhart, Barkov, and Sam Bennett, all all through the roster, Florida was much healthier this time around, and boosted by key trade deadline additions Brad Marchand and Seth Jones. Bennett led all goal-scorers in the postseason with 15, while Marchand tallied six in the Final alone.

Bennett earned the Conn Smythe Trophy as postseason Most Valuable Player (MVP). Barkov handed the Cup to first-time champion Nate Schmidt, and other teammates winning their first title got to lift the trophy soon afterward.

"It's amazing to be able to be here," Schmidt said. "I don't know whether to laugh or cry."