One year later, and the Edmonton Oilers find themselves having the opportunity to avenge their loss in the 2024 Stanley Cup Final against the very same team that beat them, the Florida Panthers. That series went to seven and the Oilers heartbreakingly suffered a one-goal defeat (2-1) in Game 7. But they are not looking to repeat the same mistakes that they did last year. In fact, after losing Game 1 last year, they went out and started strong this time around, claiming a 4-3 victory in OT thanks to an incredible goal from Leon Draisaitl.

Draisaitl was not at his best during last year's Stanley Cup Final, and he was on the receiving end of some pretty brutal clowning from fans as a result. But this year, he has been the most clutch he's ever been; his walk-off goal in Game 1 after capitalizing on a dumb penalty from the Panthers is his third of this year's playoffs, and he is certainly a man on a mission after coming away perhaps the most crestfallen of them all after last year.

With age comes wisdom, and the Oilers look like they've learned from their past — with Draisaitl crediting his team for using the adversity they've been through to make them the even more formidable unit they are today.

“I think [we're] just a little bit more mature. I thought we hung in there, we're mature and obviously we needed just one look and capitalized on that,” Draisaitl told Darren Pang of NHL on TNT.

The key for the Oilers this time around is that they did not allow the Panthers to finish them off, unlike in the first three games of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final. This should at least give them a bit of breathing room as they look to take advantage even further of being in home ice — which they weren't last year.

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Leon Draisaitl is coming up huge for the Oilers, erasing memories of 2024

Edmonton Oilers center Leon Draisaitl (29) reacts after scoring a goal against the Florida Panthers during the first period in game one of the 2025 Stanley Cup Final at Rogers Place.
Perry Nelson-Imagn Images

Draisaitl failed to score the puck a single time during the 2024 Stanley Cup Final. In 2025, he already has two against the same opponent, and the Oilers are looking very good even if they needed overtime to seal the deal and come back from a 3-1 deficit earlier in the game.

When the Oilers have both Draisaitl and Connor McDavid rolling, they are tough to stop. Now, all they need is to muster the effort to win three more games so they can finally hoist up Lord Stanley.