3 things the Blackhawks can learn from the Panthers and Oilers in the Stanley Cup Final

The Chicago Blackhawks are waiting for the 2025 NHL Draft later this month. Like the rest of the hockey world, the team will be turning their attention for the next few weeks to the Stanley Cup Final, where the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers are rematching last year's thrilling series.

The Edmonton Oilers are looking for revenge and redemption, much like the Panthers in 2024. Meanwhile Florida is looking to win back to back Stanley Cups, cementing their place in hockey history.

Both the Panthers and Oilers can offer the Blackhawks some advice on what it takes to win, so let's look at three lessons the Blackhawks can learn from the 2025 Stanley Cup Final.

1. Winning the Stanley Cup doesn't happen overnight.

Let's just look at Edmonton with this one. Connor McDavid was drafted first overall in 2015. His first trip to the Stanley Cup Final came in 2024. McDavid has yet to win the Stanley Cup

By the time McDavid was drafted, Edmonton already had Leon Draisaitl (drafted 3rd overall in 2014), Darnell Nurse (drafted 7th overall in 2013) and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (drafted 1st overall in 2011) in the organization.

Still, it took Edmonton until last year to make a run to the Stanley Cup Final and they are still four wins away from winning the Stanley Cup.

The Blackhawks drafted Connor Bedard in 2023, and that was around the beginning of their rebuild. Bedard didn't walk into a team that already had other prospects like Draisaitl and Nurse. If the Hawks followed a similar timeline as Edmonton we might not be talking about a Stanley Cup Final until 2032 or 2033.

2. The right trade can make a good team great.

Now, let's look at Florida. Two trades come to mind here for the Panthers in my book. In July 2022, the Florida Panthers traded Jonathan Huberdeau, Cole Schwindt, MacKenzie Weegar and a first round pick to the Calgary Flames for Matthew Tkachuk and a fourth round pick.

At the time, this was a massive deal for both sides as the Panthers added Tkachuk in a sign and trade and the Flames were able to recoup some assets instead of just losing one of their top players in free agency.

In the years since, the Panthers have gone to three straight Stanley Cup Finals, with Tkachuk playing a major role for the team. The Panthers made a major risk trading one of their top players in Jonathan Huberdeau as well as a top four defenseman in Weegar.

When the time the Blackhawks are winning, a trade or two like this might help shape the roster. They may have made one this past season with the Panthers that could play a big role in the years to come.

Ahead of the 2025 trade deadline, the Blackhawks shook up their roster trading Seth Jones to the Florida Panthers for Spencer Knight and a conditional first-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.

In my mind, this trade was a win win. Jones has played a big role on the Panthers, rejuvenated with the opportunity to play for a contender—while the Blackhawks landed what could be their next franchise goaltender in Spencer Knight.

3. Taking a chance on a player looking for a change of scenery can pay off.

The third major lesson the Stanley Cup Final offers the Blackhawks fits in with the Seth Jones conversation. Jones was a star player looking for a fresh start with a new team. While the Blackhawks held some salary back, the Panthers took a major gamble on Jones, a gamble that has paid off so far with Jones registering three goals and seven points so far this playoffs.

The Panthers roster is filled with players really becoming elite with a fresh start. Sam Bennett has registered 40 to 50 points pretty much every season in Florida. Gustav Forsling, a pick up off of waivers for the Panthers, has turned into an elite top pairing defender. And Sam Reinhart, a former young star in Buffalo, has turned into an elite winger a year removed from registering 57 goals in 82 games.

The Blackhawks rebuild has been focused on drafting talent, but it is going to take some trades and signings like what the Panthers have put together to truly make a good team a contender in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.