EA’s NHL 25 Sim Predicts A Maple Leafs Cup Win Against USA
Look, NHL 25 is out here making some very bold claims. First, it said the Toronto Maple Leafs are finally going to win the Stanley Cup. Then, it predicted a Canada vs. USA final at the 4 Nations Face-Off, with Canada skating away victorious thanks to—you guessed it—Connor McDavid.
So either EA Sports is pulling straight from fan fiction, or 2025 is about to be the most emotionally chaotic year in hockey history.
Let’s break it down.
Maple Leafs Win the Cup?
Get the parade ready, Toronto 🔵⚪
Introducing the #NHL25 Playoff Simulation for the #StanleyCup 🏆 #LeafsForever pic.twitter.com/v7xnFmdZqH
— EA SPORTS NHL (@EASPORTSNHL) April 19, 2025
Yes. According to NHL 25’s sim, the Leafs break the 1967 curse and hoist the Cup. Here’s their fake-but-terrifyingly-plausible path:
- First Round: 4-1 over Ottawa
- Second Round: 4-2 over Florida
- Conference Final: 4-0 sweep of Montreal (which, let’s be honest, would cause half the country to implode)
- Stanley Cup Final: 4-3 over Colorado in a seven-game war
Only one Leafs player—Mitch Marner—made NHL 25’s Team of the Season, but that didn’t stop the sim from handing them the win. The Oilers and Jets had three each, and still lost. The math doesn’t math. And maybe that’s the most Maple Leafs thing about the whole situation (don’t mess with the Canadians?).
In real life? As of April 25, Toronto leads Ottawa 3-0 for the first round. So the simulation’s not off to a bad start… which is somehow more terrifying than reassuring.
Canada vs. USA: 4 Nations Face-Off Final
If the Cup prediction didn’t rattle your superstition sensors, how about this: NHL 25 also ran a sim of the 4 Nations Face-Off, and Canada beat the U.S. in overtime of the gold medal game.
Highlights of this pixelated barnburner:
- Nathan MacKinnon opens the scoring
- Auston Matthews ties it on the power play
- Sidney Crosby puts Canada back ahead, because of course he does
- Jake Guentzel and Brady Tkachuk keep the U.S. in it, with Tkachuk tying the game, 18 seconds left on the board!
- But then: Connor McDavid wins it in OT, fed by MacKinnon, finishing with a goal and two assists. Because when the game’s on the line, McDavid hits “God Mode”
If this is what EA thinks is coming, get ready for TikTok to collapse under the weight of highlight reels and emotionally unstable reaction videos.
Do These Sims Mean Anything?
No. But also yes.
EA’s playoff sims have a history of being hit or miss. Some years they’re eerily accurate. Other years they predict situations—like a Leafs Cup win? So, take it all with a faceoff circle’s worth of salt.
But one thing’s for sure: EA knows drama. Between Toronto finally lifting the Cup and a Canada-USA showdown that goes into OT, NHL 25 is giving fans exactly what they crave—and exactly what their blood pressure doesn’t need.
Final Thoughts: Hope, Hype, and a Lot of Nervous Sweating
Whether you’re a Leafs fan hoping against hope, a U.S. fan rolling your eyes at the situations, or just someone who lives for chaos on ice, NHL 25’s predictions are doing what they do best: lighting the fuse and walking away.
So sure, it’s all just a simulation. Unless it’s not (side-eye of knowing).
