The 2005–06 Edmonton Oilers season was the Oilers' 27th season in the NHL, and they were coming off a 36–29–12–5 record with 89 points and finishing 9th in the Western Conference in 2003–04 and missed the playoffs. In 2005–06, the Oilers qualified for the playoffs in eighth place, and put on a playoff run that brought them to the Stanley Cup Finals finishing with a loss in Game 7 to the victorious Carolina Hurricanes by a score of 3–1. This was the first time an eighth seeded team reached the Stanley Cup Finals.

The 2012 Stanley Cup playoffs was the playoff tournament of the National Hockey League (NHL) for the 2011–12 season. It began on April 11, 2012, after the conclusion of the regular season, and ended on June 11, with the Los Angeles Kings defeating the New Jersey Devils in six games in the Stanley Cup Finals to win their first Stanley Cup championship. Kings goaltender Jonathan Quick, having recorded a 1.41 goals against average, was named the Conn Smythe Trophy winner as the playoffs' most valuable player.