Edmonton Oilers were super chill after advancing to Stanley Cup Final
The Edmonton Oilers are off to the Stanley Cup Final after eliminating the Dallas Stars for a second straight season, but the job is far from done.
While winning the Western Conference title is a big deal for teams, the Oilers treated the moment as simply another step along the road to their ultimate goal. Last season, there was hugging, cheering, and a whole lot of emotion, but that was far from the case this time around.
Instead, the Oilers looked as though they came away with just another win and accepted the Clarence Campbell Bowl with little fanfare. For a team bound for the Stanley Cup Final, they were extremely chill.
This calm demeanour followed into the post-game media availabilities, as captain Connor McDavid explained what’s changed with this version of the team.
“I think this run has felt different than last year,” McDavid told reporters. “It’s felt very normal, it’s felt very, I don’t wanna say boring, cause it’s not boring at all, but it hasn’t been as emotional.
“We haven’t had the highs, and we haven’t had the lows. Just been steady, and I think that’s put us in a good position.”
#Oilers forwards Leon Draisaitl & Connor McDavid address the media after they each recorded two points in Thursday's 6-3 series-clinching win over the Stars.@Enterprise | #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/IawiEPTSyA
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) May 30, 2025
In other words, this team has been in this position before and understands what it takes to finish the job. The sting of last year’s defeat is still being felt by every returning member of the Oilers, and it won’t stop until the Stanley Cup returns to Edmonton.
The lack of emotions has helped this team reserve their energy for their upcoming rematch against the Florida Panthers.
“Those games can be emotionally draining, we’re not drained,” McDavid said. “We’ve got lots of depth. We’ve got as good a chance as they do.”
If you want to boil this down to a single word, Corey Perry would choose “mature” to describe this iteration of the Oilers. The wily veteran echoed his captain’s sentiment that last year built the foundation of how this team feels in these types of playoff situations.
“This is why we play, this is what we do,” Perry said. “We’re mature, we’ve learned, and we’re learning every game. The way we’re playing, the calmness on the bench and making plays when things are going hairy on the ice.
“There has been a lot of thinking about last year and self-reflecting, but here we are.”
"He takes off. They've got a push going, they just scored that power-play goal. He puts it in the back of the net, quiets our bench & calms everything down."
Corey Perry on McDavid's second-period goal to restore the #Oilers two-goal lead.@Enterprise | #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/6I9uQQzMaZ
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) May 30, 2025
This Oilers team is ready to take that next step, but nothing is guaranteed in hockey. The road to the Stanley Cup still goes through Florida.
Mature or not, Edmonton still has plenty of work left to do.