Stanley Cup Finals: Dates, schedule, how to watch, history, odds & more

The NHL season reaches its crescendo as the 32 teams have been whittled down to a best-of-seven showdown between the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers.

Last year's beaten finalists Florida are bidding to go one better and claim the title for the first time in their history, while Edmonton carry the hopes of a first Canadian Cup victory since Montreal's triumph in 1993.

Stanley Cup Finals - Dates

The series begins in Sunrise, Florida on Saturday night, June 9th with puck drop scheduled for 01.00 BST Time, with Game Two on Monday night at the same time.

The series moves to Edmonton on Thursday night, June 14th at 01.00 BST and Game Four on Saturday night, June 16th at the same time.

If required, the teams will return to Florida to face off again on Tuesday night, June 18th and a potential Game Six scheduled for the night of June 21st back up at Rogers Place.

A deciding Game Seven, should it be needed, would happen on the night of June 24th, back in Sunrise, with all those games starting at 01.00 BST.

Stanley Cup Finals - Teams

This year's Stanley Cup is a clash of styles, as the gritty Panthers try to cancel out the skill and speed of Connor McDavid's Oilers.

The sides met twice in the regular season with Florida claiming the points on both occasions.

However, both meetings took place before the turn of the year, which is aeons ago in NHL terms.

The Panthers ended the regular season at the top of the Atlantic Division and saw off local rivals Tampa Bay in five games in the first round of the playoffs.

They took six games to muscle out the Boston Bruins in round two and another six to dump out the Presidents Trophy winners New York Rangers in the Eastern Conference final.

This is their third appearance in the Stanley Cup Final, having lost to the Vegas Golden Knights last year and Colorado Avalanche in 1996.

Edmonton recovered from a disastrous start to the season to finish second to Vancouver in the Pacific Division.

Their turnaround began with the hiring of head coach Kris Knoblauch in November and included a 16-game winning streak, which is the second longest in NHL history.

The Oilers beat the LA Kings 4-1 in the first round and came back from a 3-2 series deficit to beat the Canucks in round two.

They won the last three games of their Western Conference final series with Dallas to record a 4-2 victory.

Edmonton were the dominant team of the 1980s, winning the Stanley Cup five times between 1984 and 1990, however, success has eluded them since and this is their first trip to the Final since 2006.

Edmonton's game is based of offensive skill and the top three most productive players of the postseason - McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and defenseman Evan Bouchard, are all Oilers.

Florida, coached by Paul Maurice, prefer a grittier, physical approach which they have used to great effect to neutralise other teams' skill players throughout the playoffs.

Stanley Cup Finals - Venues

Florida finished with more regular-season points, so the first two games of the series take place at the Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Florida. 

The stadium has a capacity of 19,250 when configured for ice hockey, and also hosts basketball, arena football and concerts, although the Panthers are the only major league team to play there.

Rogers Place in Edmonton is home to the Oilers and will host games three, four and, if needed, six.

The arena seats 18,347 fans and also hosts the WHL junior hockey team Edmonton Oil Kings.

Stanley Cup Finals - TV channel and how to watch

The series will be broadcast on Premier Sports in the UK, on Sportsnet, CBC and TVA Sports in Canada and on ABC and ESPN+ in the United States.

Stanley Cup Finals - History

This will be the 108th time the Stanley Cup has been awarded. 

A total of 26 different teams have lifted the trophy, with Florida hoping to become the 27th, while Edmonton are chasing their sixth Cup but first since 1990.

The Montreal Canadiens are the most successful team in NHL history, with 24 Stanley Cup wins, although their most recent was back in 1993.

Stanley Cup Finals - Format

This is a best-of-seven series with the trophy being awarded when one team has reached four wins.

As the team with the more regular-season points, Florida have home ice advantage in games one, two, five and the deciding Game Seven should it be required.

Stanley Cup Finals - Odds