The 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs field is down to the final four. The Carolina Hurricanes and Florida Panthers face off in a rematch of the 2023 Eastern Conference finals, while the Western Conference finals are a return bout from 2024 between the Dallas Stars and Edmonton Oilers.

NHL experts, by and large, are not giving the Oilers the benefit of the doubt heading into their Western Conference Final against the Stars.

It's a rematch of last season's Western Conference final, but with a few new twists on both sides that could change the game.

Dallas and Edmonton in the playoffs for the eighth time, dueling it out in another Western Conference finals that starts here at the AAC at 7 on

One of Canada’s remaining stars offered a perspective on the pressure of playing north of the border. Leon Draisaitl, speaking Monday as the Edmonton Oilers prepare for the Western Conference Final, addressed whether the intense environment around Canadian teams creates a unique challenge.

The Oilers and Stars are the 10th set of teams to meet in the Conference Final in consecutive seasons, and Edmonton will look to be the sixth team to win both times after defeating Dallas in six games last year.

Suffice it to say, the perception of the Edmonton Oilers has changed quite a bit in a month. They’ve gone from having major question marks surrounding them before their first-round series against the Los Angeles Kings to looking like a powerhouse heading into their Western Conference final rematch with the Dallas Stars.

The Edmonton Oilers appear to be getting close to having Mattias Ekholm back in action, as the series versus the Dallas Stars approaches.