Final 2025 NHL Playoff Bracket, Seedings and Updated Standings
The final 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs bracket is set after the Montreal Canadiens clinched the final available postseason spot with a 4-2 home win over the Carolina Hurricanes.
Here's a look at how everything stands.
Eastern Conference
A1. Toronto Maple Leafs vs. WC1. Ottawa Senators
A2. Tampa Bay Lightning vs. A3. Florida Panthers
M1. Washington Capitals vs. WC2. Montreal Canadiens
M2. Carolina Hurricanes vs. M3. New Jersey Devils
Western Conference
P1. Vegas Golden Knights vs. WC1. Minnesota Wild
P2. Los Angeles Kings vs. P3. Edmonton Oilers
C1. Winnipeg Jets vs. WC2. St. Louis Blues
C2. Dallas Stars vs. C3. Colorado Avalanche
This year's Stanley Cup playoffs has no shortage of storylines, but the Washington Capitals and the NHL's new all-time leading goalscorer, Alex Ovechkin, may be at the forefront.
The 39-year-old has enjoyed a brilliant season with 43 goals in just 64 games. That feat is made more remarkable when considering that Ovechkin missed a month and 10 days with a fractured left fibula.
He returned on Dec. 28 and didn't miss a beat en route to leading the Capitals to the Eastern Conference's highest point total.
Other storylines abound in the East, including whether the Toronto Maple Leafs can finally engineer a deep playoff run and whether the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers, who finished the regular season 7-10-1 in their last 18 games, can get it together for the postseason.
In the West, the President's Trophy-winning Winnipeg Jets have the look of a potential Stanley Cup champion, thanks largely to superstar goalie Connor Hellebuyck and a standout defense in front of him. Of course, the forwards have been exceptional as well, led by Kyle Connor and Mark Scheifele.
But this is a loaded conference. The defending Western Conference champion Edmonton Oilers will notably go into the playoffs as a No. 3 seed, and the league's hottest team in the back stretch courtesy of a 12-game winning streak, the St. Louis Blues, are a wild card.
Ultimately, this looks to be an exciting postseason, which is par for the course in the NHL.
Stars' Tyler Seguin Activated Off Long-Term IR for NHL Playoffs After Hip Injury Rehab
The Dallas Stars have activated Tyler Seguin from long-term injured reserve ahead of Wednesday's regular season finale against the Nashville Predators, according to Field Level Media (h/t ESPN.)
The news comes after Stars head coach Pete DeBoer said Seguin was "in the mix" to play on Wednesday night, per DallasStars.com's Mike Heika.
Seguin, who last played on Dec. 1, underwent hip surgery on Dec. 5. He started taking contact during practice last week.
The Stars are set to face the Colorado Avalanche in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The postseason begins Saturday, although the series schedule has yet to be finalized.
Lian Bichsel and Alexander Petrovic were also moved from the Stars roster in an apparent cap space-clearing move to play Seguin on Wednesday, per Lia Assimakopoulos of the Dallas Morning News.
Assimakopoulos noted that both Bischel and Petrovic can be called back up when the cap lifts ahead of the playoffs.
The Stars are meanwhile still waiting on the return of star defenseman Miro Heiskanen, who hasn't played since Jan. 28 and underwent surgery on an injured knee Feb. 4.
Stars general manager Jim Nill said on Monday that Heiskanen wouldn't play Game 1 against the Avs, but that the Stars hope he will return at some point during the first round, per DLLS Sports' Sean Shapiro.
Seguin underwent surgery in December to repair a left side femoralacetabular impingement and the hip labrum, according to NHL.com.
Nill described the issue at the time as a "wear and tear injury" that Seguin had been dealing with "for a while."
At the time of his surgery, Seguin ranked third on the Stars with 20 points (nine goals, 11 assists) in his first 19 games of the season.
Seguin previously underwent hip surgery in November 2020. He played just three games that season after undergoing right hip arthroscopy and labral repair.
He returned in 2021 and went on to post three consecutive 20-goal seasons. The Stars are now hoping the 33-year-old forward can make a similar bounce-back this spring.
The Stars have geared up for the playoffs with the trade deadline additions of star forward Mikko Rantanen and right winger Mikael Granlund, who has taken on Seguin's spot amid his recovery.
Seguin's return could bump Granlund down to Jamie Benn's third line and give Dallas a top six of Jason Robertson, Roope Hintz and Rantanen in front of Mason Marchment, Matt Duchene and Seguin.
The Stars have already clinched home-ice advantage in the series against the Avs. Getting a healthy Seguin and Heiskanen back could further boost the team's odds of making it to the second round this spring.
Penguins' Kris Letang Has Surgery to Repair Hole in Heart, Recovery to Take 4-6 Weeks
Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang underwent successful surgery to repair a hole in his heart, Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas announced Wednesday.
His expected recovery time is four to six weeks.
The procedure involved closing a patent foramen ovale (PFO), or "small hole in the heart," according to the Penguins. The surgery was performed at UPMC Presbyterian Hospital by Dr. Conrad Smith.
The Penguins, who are already eliminated from playoff contention, end the 2024-25 season on Thursday against the visiting Washington Capitals.
Letang has suffered two strokes during his NHL career, the first in 2014 when he was 26 years old.
Testing at the time revealed Letang had a PFO in the wall of his heart since birth, which doctors concluded could have contributed to the stroke, according to the team. He was prescribed blood thinners and spent 10 weeks away from the Penguins toward the end of the 2013-14 season.
Letang then suffered a second stroke during his age-35 season in November 2022. He returned to the team less than two weeks later, in part thanks to both a milder stroke and prior knowledge of what had caused it.
Everyone is born with a PFO, and more than a quarter of people still have the hole in their heart past infancy, according to the American Heart Association.
The demands of the NHL could potentially exacerbate the risks associated with the condition, director of Cleveland Clinic’s Cerebrovascular Center Dr. M. Shazam Hussain told TribLive's Justin Vellucci after Letang's second stroke in 2022.
Hussain told Vellucci that "the physical strain of constant physical activity can stress the heart, and there is some speculation that it can even predispose someone to have more of a risk of stroke.”
Letang has been the Penguins' top defenseman for the last 15 seasons despite multiple serious health concerns, including the two strokes in addition to multiple concussions, broken bones and a herniated disc in his neck.
He was nevertheless once again a go-to option for the Penguins on the power play, penalty kill and at even strength in 2024-25. He averaged 23:32 of ice time through 74 games.
The veteran defenseman, who will turn 38 later this month, is signed through the 2027-28 season.
Matthew Tkachuk Talks Injury, Panthers' Trades, NHL Playoffs and More in B/R Interview
Whether Matthew Tkachuk returns in time for Game 1 of the Florida Panthers’ playoff run could depend on the NHL schedule.
Tkachuk hasn’t played for the Panthers since suffering a groin injury in February’s 4 Nations Face-Off. He said his “goal” is to rejoin practice this week, but his return to game action will hinge on what day the postseason starts.
“We don’t know exactly when exactly the first set of games are going to be. So, just building toward, and hoping to peak those few days of practice right before I can come back and play, and get through those and be off running,” Tkachuk told Bleacher Report.
Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said Monday on WQAM’s The Joe Rose Show that Tkachuk is “very, very close” to returning, and that if even if the forward isn’t ready for Game 1, “we’re not missing this by two weeks.”
Tkachuk suffered his injury during Team USA’s round robin win over Canada on Feb. 15. He played limited minutes for the rest of the tournament and was placed on long-term injured reserve by the Panthers on March 2.
The Panthers have gone 13-11-1 since the 4 Nations break, enough to allow the defending champions to clinch a Stanley Cup Playoffs berth on April 5.
Tkachuk has been with his team throughout these past two months. He’s been skating before practices. He’s been traveling with his teammates. But he says it was still difficult to not be on the ice down the stretch of the regular season.
“You just want to be out there, and in the room, talking between periods and on the bench, going through the battle and going through the actual grind with them, but I’m around them, traveling and skating before the practices,” Tkachuk said. “I’m around them a lot. So that part is great, but it just makes that itch, like you wanna get in so bad. So, hopefully that time will be soon.”
Tkachuk continued: “It’s unfortunate, but you’ve got to make the most out of it. You’ve gotta be positive in the recovery and still help the guys. I still watch every game, so if I have pointers or stuff I see, I’ll talk to some guys and try to help and pump everybody up, kind of be a cheerleader a little bit.”
For the Panthers, temporarily losing one of the team’s top scorers came with a silver lining. The additional cap space granted by Tkachuk’s move to LTIR allowed the Florida front office to facilitate a busy trade deadline, highlighted by the addition of former Boston Bruins captain Brad Marchand.
The news of the Marchand trade broke minutes after the afternoon trade deadline. By that time, Tkachuk had already put his phone away, thinking the news was over.
“And then the news broke, and it was a big-time trade, so super exited… He’s going to be a huge part for our team if we’re going to do something special this year,” Tkachuk said.
The Panthers also acquired Seth Jones and Vitek Vanecek at a deadline Tkachuk said gave him further confidence the Panthers organization wants to win another Stanley Cup.
“When you trade for new guys like that, and studs like that, it just shows that the team and organization is committed to winning, and they want to win, and they believe in you to win,” Tkachuk said. “Gives us a lot of confidence as well, to know they believe in us.”
The Panthers wrapped up the regular season on Tuesday night with a 5-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The team will see Nikita Kucherov and the Lightning again in the first round, where the two Florida teams are set to match up for the fourth time in five seasons. Last spring, Tkachuk started out the Panthers’ run to the Stanley Cup by racking up nine points during a 4-1 series win over Tampa Bay.
“It’s going to be a great first round,” Tkachuk said. “I’ve got a lot of confidence in my team, but definitely have a lot of respect for the players that have won on their team before, and all the talent that they have, with all the guys that have been there through the championships. There’s a lot of championship pedigree on that ice, and guys that have gone through it all, and know what it takes to make a great series.”
Tkachuk added that he isn’t concerned about the Panthers going into this matchup without home ice advantage, especially after starting out the 2023 postseason by recovering from a 3-1 series deficit to defeat Marchand and the Bruins at TD Garden.
“We were the road team in all four series [in 2023], and won three of them. So, I guess it really doesn’t matter too much… being the defending champs, I hope we’re going to be a tough out,” Tkachuk said.
If the Panthers make it past the Lightning for a second straight season, Tkachuk could potentially meet up with his brother in the playoffs for the first time.
Brady Tkachuk and the Ottawa Senators are on track for a first-round matchup with the Toronto Maple Leafs. If the Sens can upset the top seed in the Atlantic and the Panthers defeat the Lightning, the two teams would clash in the second round.
Tkachuk has spent his entire NHL career on the opposite side of the ice from his brother. But he says he likes it best when Brady is on his team, like when the brothers shared a line for the first time in their competitive careers while representing Team USA at 4 Nations.
“It’s way more natural to play with him, even though we’ve played against each other our whole lives, whether it’s one-on-one in the basement or street hockey, we’ve had more battles against each other than anybody else in the world… playing with him and playing on a line with him, it fits so well, and it was instant chemistry,” Tkachuk said.
Amid injuries that sidelined both Tkachuk brothers for stretches of the tournament, Team USA made it to the 4 Nations title game before suffering a 3-2 overtime loss to Connor McDavid and Team Canada.
The rematch could take place during the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympics, where NHL players will be participating for the first time since 2014.
“I just think the United States should be so lucky, and so happy, with the talent and the roster that they can assemble for this 2026 Olympics,” Tkachuk said.
He continued: “It’s always been a dream of mine to play in the Olympics one day. So hopefully, can make that happen, and being able to do that with my brother, hopefully we can do it.”
Before then, the Panthers are looking to become the ninth franchise in NHL history to win consecutive Stanley Cups.
While waiting to fight for his own ticket to the Stanley Cup Final, Tkachuk is "excited" to join Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar in partnering again with the NHL’s official hair salon Great Clips to promote the “Check-In to Win” sweepstakes running today through May 19, which one fan and a guest can win a trip to the Stanley Cup Final. Ten other fans can win gift cards to Great Clips and NHLShop.com, but Tkachuk is staying focused on the Final. "It's going to be really, really cool. And that lucky fan is going to have the time of their lives," said Tkachuk.
Until then, Tkachuk has haircut advice for anyone getting a mullet of their own. “I guess you show a picture, but a little tight on the sides, leave more on the back and top, and let it fly,” he says.
The NHL regular season wraps up on Thursday, followed by the Saturday start of the postseason. The Panthers will hope for a slightly later start to their own playoff schedule to give Tkachuk as much recovery time as possible before Game 1.