Oilers, Panthers set for high-stakes Stanley Cup rematch
The Oilers, powered by superstar Connor McDavid, will face defending champion Florida in the NHL's best-of-seven championship series in a rematch of last year's final, won by the Panthers in seven games.
Not since the Montreal Canadiens in 1993 has a Canadian team captured the trophy, but in what has been an intense US-Canada rivalry year, the Oilers have a chance to end the epic drought and US possession of the Cup.
'It's going to be an incredible battle again,' Panthers forward Sam Reinhart said. 'They're playing some pretty dominant hockey, so we're excited for the challenge. We've got to be ready for it.'
A US-Canada grudge match fueled by political overtones could be in the making when the series begins on Wednesday in Edmonton.
US President Donald Trump began the tensions by calling for Canada to become the 51st state, even calling former prime minister Justin Trudeau 'governor' as if he were only in charge of a US state not a nation. Tariffs against the border neighbors didn't help either.
It all boiled over in the NHL's Four Nations Faceoff tournament when the United States played Canada at Montreal in a round-robin game on February 15 and fans booed the pre-game singing of the US national anthem.
Once the puck was dropped, there were three fights in the first nine seconds as the crowd roared. A hard-hitting contest followed with the Americans winning 3-1.
Five nights later, the USA and Canada met in the tournament final at Boston, where microphone-wearing referee Gord Dwyer said, 'Let's get ready for an epic battle,' before dropping the puck.
Only one penalty was called and the teams delivered a world-class contest with McDavid scoring the winning goal for Canada in a 3-2 overtime triumph.
'You can't take our country -- and you can't take our game,' Trudeau posted on X moments after the finish.
Heated emotions remain in US-Canada relations. Canadian hockey legend Wayne Gretzky faced backlash at home over his support for Trump.
'Never say never'
Travel from Canada to the United States has dipped dramatically and new Canadian prime minister Mark Carney had a minor confrontation in a White House visit with Trump.
Carney told Trump Canada would never be for sale, with the US leader replying, 'Never say never.'
That is the backdrop for the Oilers and Panthers rematch, the 12th time the same two teams meet in consecutive Cup finals, the first since Pittsburgh beat Detroit in 2009 after losing to the Red Wings the previous year.
No NHL team has beaten the same rival in back-to-back finals since Montreal beat Boston in 1977 and 1978.
McDavid and German teammate Leon Draisaitl lead all NHL playoff scorers and Edmonton goaltender Stuart Skinner has rebounded after losing his starting job earlier in the playoffs.
The Panthers seized a 3-0 lead in last year's final before the Oilers pulled level only to fall in game seven.
'I think we were better for going through last year. It was a great learning experience and it has really driven us all year,' McDavid said.
'This run has felt different than last year. It has felt very normal. It hasn't been as emotional. We haven't had the highs and we haven't had the lows. It has just kind of been steady and I think that has put us in a good position.'
Florida makes a third consecutive finals appearance, having lost to Vegas in 2023 before winning last year.
The Panthers are sparked by Finnish forward Alexander Barkov, who has six goals and 11 assists to lead Florida in this playoff run. Sam Bennett has a playoff-best 10 goals for the Panthers and right wing Matthew Tkachuk, who started one of the early fights in the US-Canada Four-Nations slugfest, brings an emotional lift to the trophy holders.
Russian 36-year-old goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky is 12-5 in the playoffs with a 2.11 goals-against average for Florida.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Straits Times
3 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Liverpool beaten 4-2 by AC Milan in Hong Kong pre-season friendly
HONG KONG: Former Chelsea midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek scored as Premier League champions Liverpool were beaten 4-2 by AC Milan today in a pre-season friendly in Hong Kong. Liverpool, with record signing Florian Wirtz making his first start, dominated possession under the closed roof at Kai Tak Stadium but a shaky defence was punished for all four Milan goals. Rafael Leao opened the scoring for the Italian side on 10 minutes with Dominik Szoboszlai's superb strike equalising 16 minutes later to make it 1-1 at half-time But Loftus-Cheek, six minutes after the break, and two goals from substitute Noah Okafor, either side of Cody Gakpo's late header, gave AC Milan the victory. Liverpool's Hong Kong fans vastly outnumbered those supporting AC Milan in the 49,704 sellout crowd. They paid a heartfelt tribute to Diogo Jota, who passed away earlier this month in a car crash. Flowers were laid by Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish in front of fans, who responded by holding up a mosaic spelling out "DJ20" in honour of Jota's number 20 shirt, which has been retired by the club. Leao, too, remembered his fellow Portuguese player Jota as he offered a silent prayer and formed the number 20 with his fingers after scoring the opener. Wirtz played 45 minutes and looked comfortable directing operations, showing hints of why Bayer Leverkusen were paid a reported British transfer record US$150 million (RM633 million) for the German playmaker. Other new Liverpool signings left-back Milos Kerkez and right-back Jeremie Frimpong both came on as substitutes at half-time. But Striker Hugo Ekitike, who was signed from Entracht Frankfurt for a reported US$92 million, was not ready to take part, having only flown in to join his new teammates two days earlier. Liverpool started without a recognised central striker as Darwin Nunez and Luis Diaz, who have both been linked to move away from Anfield, were left out of the matchday squad. Liverpool will now fly to Japan to face Yokohama F-Marinos on Wednesday.
The Star
4 hours ago
- The Star
Trump tariffs leave costly China supply question unanswered; Indonesia among countries deeply affected
JAKARTA (Bloomberg): President Donald Trump's recent flurry of trade deals have given Asian exporters some clarity on tariffs, but missing are key details on how to avoid punitive rates that target China's supply chains. Trump unveiled tariffs of 20% for Vietnam and 19% for Indonesia and the Philippines, signaling those are the levels the US will likely settle on for most of Southeast Asia, a region that ships US$352 billion worth of goods annually to the US. He's also threatened to rocket rates up to 40% for products deemed to be transshipped, or re-routed, through those countries - a move largely directed at curbing Chinese goods circumventing higher US tariffs. But still unclear to manufacturers is how the US will calculate and apply local-content requirements, key to how it will determine what constitutes transshipped goods. South-East Asian nations are highly reliant on Chinese components and raw materials, and US firms that source from the region would bear the extra tariff damage. That's left companies, investors and economists facing several unanswered questions about Trump's tariffs that appear aimed at squeezing out Chinese content, according to Deborah Elms, head of trade policy at the Hinrich Foundation in Singapore. "Is that raw materials? All raw materials? Above a certain percentage?' she said. "How about parts? What about labor or services? What about investment?' In an agreement with Indonesia last week, the White House said the two countries would negotiate "rules of origin' to ensure a third country wouldn't benefit. The deal with Vietnam earlier this month outlined a higher 40% tariff rate for transshipped goods. And Thai officials, who have yet to secure a deal, detailed that they likely need to boost local content in exports to the US. Missing Details The Trump administration isn't providing much clarity on the matter right now. US officials are still working out details with trading partners and looking at value-based local content requirements, to ensure exports are more than just assembled imported parts, according to a person familiar with the matter, who didn't want to be identified discussing private talks. A senior Trump administration official also said this week that details on the approach to transshipment are expected to be released before Aug. 1, the deadline for when higher US tariffs kick in. Some factories are already adjusting their supply chains to comply with rules that will require more locally-made components in production. Frank Deng, an executive at a Shanghai-based furniture exporter with operations in Vietnam - and which gets about 80% of business from the US - said in an interview his firm is making adjustments as authorities appear to be more strictly enforcing country-of-origin rules. Vietnam has always had specific local content requirements for manufacturers, Deng added, including that a maximum of 30% of the volume of raw materials originates from China, and the value after production in Vietnam must be 40% higher than the imported raw materials. "We've been struggling to meet all the standards so that we can still stay in the game,' Deng said. "But I guess that's the only way to survive now.' For most of Southeast Asia, reducing the amount of Chinese-made components in manufacturing will require a complete overhaul of their supply chains. Estimates from Eurasia Group show that Chinese components make up about 60% to 70% of exports from Southeast Asia - primarily industrial inputs that go into manufacturing assembly. About 15% of the region's exports now head to the US, up about four percentage points from 2018. Local Content The US has become increasingly vigilant about China's ability to bypass US trade tariffs and other restrictions through third countries since Trump's first trade war in 2017. Thailand signaled its frustration over the lack of clarity for how much local content is needed in goods exported to the US to avert transshipment rates, but noted it will likely be much higher than a traditional measure of 40%. "From what we've heard, the required percentage could be significantly higher, perhaps 60%, 70%, or even 80%,' Deputy Prime Minister Pichai Chunhavajira said July 14. "Emerging countries or new production bases are clearly at a disadvantage,' he said, as their manufacturing capabilities are still at an early stage and must rely on other countries for raw goods. Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia have all taken steps this year to address Trump's concerns, increasing scrutiny of trade that passes through their ports including new rule-of-origin policies that centralize processing and imposing harsh penalties on transshippers. Developing nations may still struggle to enforce Trump's rules or comply with the rules if it means going up against China, their largest trading partner and geopolitical partner. "The reality is it's not enforceable at all,' said Dan Wang, China director at Eurasia Group. "Chinese companies have all kinds of ways to get around it and those other countries have no incentive to enforce those measures, or capacity to collect the data and determine local content.' -- Reports from Patpicha Tanakasempipat, Skylar Woodhouse and Nguyen Dieu Tu Uyen. -- ©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
The Star
4 hours ago
- The Star
US drops sanctions on Myanmar junta allies after Trump praise
A trishaw driver rides as his passenger uses an umbrella to cover themselves from the rain in Yangon on July 21, 2025. -- Photo by Sai Aung MAIN / AFP YANGON (AFP): The United States has lifted sanctions on several allies of Myanmar's ruling general and their military-linked firms, a US Treasury notice shows, after the junta chief sent a glowing letter of praise to President Donald Trump. Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing seized power in a 2021 coup, deposing the civilian government and sparking a civil war that has killed thousands, leaving 3.5 million displaced and half the nation in poverty. Two weeks ago, the top general sent a letter to Trump, responding to his threat of tariffs by lauding his presidency with praise, including for shutting down US-funded media outlets covering the conflict. A US Treasury notice on Thursday said sanctions were dropped against KT Services and Logistics, the Myanmar Chemical and Machinery Company, and Suntac Technologies -- as well as their managers. In a statement, a US Treasury Department spokesperson denied there was an "ulterior motive" in the move, although the notice did not provide a reason for the removals. "Anyone suggesting these sanctions were lifted for an ulterior motive is uninformed and peddling a conspiracy theory driven by hatred for President Trump," said the spokesperson, on condition of anonymity. They added that individuals were "regularly added and removed" from the sanctions list "in the ordinary course of business." KT Services and Logistics and its CEO Jonathan Myo Kyaw Thaung were described as junta "cronies" when they were sanctioned in 2022 for leasing Yangon's port from a military firm for $3 million a year. The Myanmar Chemical and Machinery Company and its owner, Aung Hlaing Oo, and Suntac Technologies owner Sit Taing Aung were sanctioned later that year for producing arms, including tanks and mortars. A third Myanmar national, Tin Latt Min -- who the US previously described as owning "various companies that are closely related to the regime" -- was also removed from the sanctions list. Trump sent a letter to junta chief Min Aung Hlaing earlier this month, one among a raft of missives despatched to foreign leaders during his global tariff blitz. The letter -- believed to be Washington's first public recognition of the junta's rule since the coup -- threatened Myanmar with a 40 percent levy unless a trade deal was struck. Min Aung Hlaing responded with a multi-page letter expressing his "sincere appreciation" for Trump's message and praising his "strong leadership". - AFP
