NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 15, 2025
NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 15, 2025
The Oilers advance to the Western Conference Final, the Panthers push the Maple Leafs to the brink of elimination, the Flyers hire Rick Tocchet as their new coach, the Canucks promote Adam Foote as their new bench boss, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.
RECAPS OF WEDNESDAY’S NHL ACTION
NHL.COM: The Edmonton Oilers are heading to the Western Conference Final for the third time in four years after defeating the Vegas Golden Knights 1-0 in Game 5 of their second-round series.

Edmonton Oilers winger Kasperi Kapanen (NHL Images).
Kasperi Kapanen scored in overtime, and Stuart Skinner turned in 24 saves for his second straight shutout as the Oilers took the series four games to one. Adin Hill made 31 saves for the Golden Knights, who played without sidelined captain Mark Stone for the first time in a postseason game since he joined the team in 2019.
The Oilers await the winner of the Winnipeg Jets-Dallas Stars series.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: This was Kapanen’s second game in this postseason, but he scored the biggest goal of his career, becoming the seventh player in Oilers history to score a series-clinching overtime goal.
Kapanen is another example of the Oilers’ depth making the difference in this postseason. The bulk of their offense still comes from Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Evan Bouchard, but they’re also getting production from Connor Brown, Vasily Podkolzin, and veterans like Adam Henrique, Viktor Arvidsson, Corey Perry and a healthy Evander Kane.
Meanwhile, their defensive game continues to improve as the playoffs continue. They’ll get a boost with sidelined defenseman Mattias Ekholm and backup goalie Calvin Pickard expected to be ready for the Conference Final.
Skinner’s critics are quieter after his back-to-back shutout performance, joining Cam Talbot and Curtis Joseph among Oilers goalies to accomplish that feat in the postseason. He’s also the fifth in franchise history to post a series-clinching shutout, joining Joseph, Bill Ranford, Dwayne Roloson, and Mike Smith.
The Florida Panthers are on the verge of advancing to the Eastern Conference Final for the third straight year after crushing the Toronto Maple Leafs 6-1 in Game 5 of their second-round series.
Sergei Bobrovsky made 31 saves, Dmitry Kulikov tallied the game-winning goal, and Aaron Ekblad and Jesper Boqvist each had a goal and an assist for the Panthers, who’ve taken a 3-2 series lead. Nick Robertson scored for the Leafs, who pulled starting goalie Joseph Woll after he gave up five goals on 25 shots.
Florida can wrap this series up on home ice in Game 6 on Friday, May 16, at 8 pm ET.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Panthers deserve full marks for their superb performance in this game, but the Maple Leafs made it easy for them with a lifeless effort that had the Toronto crowd booing them off the ice following the second period. Some of their fans tossed their Leafs jerseys on the ice in disgust during the final period.
Panthers forward Evan Rodrigues missed this game with an undisclosed injury. Boqvist took his place.
This was the Leafs’ third straight loss after taking a 2-0 lead over the Panthers in this series. Another pathetic effort like that in Game 6 on Friday, and the Leafs will be booking tee-times on Saturday.
HEADLINES
PHILLY HOCKEY NOW: The Flyers will make Rick Tocchet their 25th coach in franchise history. He will reportedly receive a five-year, $25 million contract. Tocchet won the Jack Adams Trophy last season with the Vancouver Canucks.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: No surprise here, Tocchet was considered the favorite for this job. He should work well with the younger players on the rebuilding Flyers.
Speaking of the young Flyers, Matvei Michkov was involved in a single-car accident while vacationing in Dubai. He rented the car but was not the driver. There were no injuries, and there was no alcohol or drugs involved.
Michkov and his friend had their passports illegally taken away by the car rental company and were reportedly extorted for $100K to avoid having details of the accident leaked to the media.
THE PROVINCE: The Vancouver Canucks promoted assistant coach Adam Foote as their new head coach, taking over from the departed Rick Tocchet.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Manny Malhotra appeared to be the favorite because of his success with their AHL affiliate in Abbotsford this season. However, Foote was praised by team captain Quinn Hughes earlier this season, which may have factored into his promotion.
The Canucks also signed prospect defenseman Tom Willander to an entry-level contract. Willander, 20, completed his sophomore season with Boston University. He was selected 11th overall by the Canucks in the 2023 NHL Draft.
THE WINNIPEG SUN: Jake Oettinger of the Dallas Stars is poised to take the crown of the USA’s top goaltender away from the Jets’ Connor Hellebuyck. While the former is poised to win his third Vezina Trophy, the latter has a better playoff record and is on the verge of eliminating Hellebuyck and his teammates from the postseason.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Hellebuyck is one of the best regular-season goalies in the league, but he struggles mightily during the playoffs. He’ll need to have the best game of his career if the Jets hope to avoid elimination tonight by the Stars.
THE HOCKEY NEWS: The Hurricanes’ superior depth has made the difference in their second-round series against the Washington Capitals.
Meanwhile, the Capitals had Connor McMichael replacing Lars Eller centering their third line during practice on Wednesday. Eller is expected to be a healthy scratch from Game 5 on Thursday.
PUCKPEDIA: It doesn’t appear that the Ottawa Senators have forfeited their 2025 first-round pick. They had 24 hours following the 2025 NHL Draft Lottery to forfeit the pick as part of the punishment handed down by the league for their role in a trade being invalidated in 2022.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Senators were given the choice of forfeiting their 2024, 2025 or 2026 pick.