Betfred Look Ahead: Golden Knights Take on Panthers in Stanley Cup Final
The Look Ahead is presented by Betfred
Vegas Golden Knights vs. Florida PanthersSTANLEY CUP FINAL SCHEDULE
Sat., June 3: Panthers at Golden Knights, 5 p.m. PT (TNT, TBS, truTV)
Mon., June 5: Panthers at Golden Knights, 5 p.m. PT (TNT, TBS, truTV)
Thu., June 8: Golden Knights at Panthers, 5 p.m. PT (TNT, TBS, truTV)
Sat., June 10: Golden Knights at Panthers, 5 p.m. PT (TNT, TBS, truTV)
\Tue., June 13: Panthers at Golden Knights, 5 p.m. PT (TNT, TBS, truTV)
\Fri., June 16: Golden Knights at Panthers, 5 p.m. PT (TNT, TBS, truTV)
\Mon., June 19: Panthers at Golden Knights, 5 p.m. PT (TNT, TBS, truTV)
* = If necessary*
The Golden Knights finished the regular season as Pacific Division Champions and atop the Western Conference with a 51-22-9 record and 111 points. The Florida Panthers finished in fourth place in the Atlantic Division with a 42-32-8 record and 92 points. This is Florida's first trip to the Stanley Cup Final since 1996 and Vegas' second trip since the 2017-2018 inaugural season. The Golden Knights went 1-1 against the Panthers during the regular season and are 6-3-1 against Florida all-time.
On Jan. 12, the Golden Knights defeated the Panthers, 4-2, at T-Mobile Arena. Nick Cousins opened the scoring for Florida two minutes into the first period. In the second, Nicolas Roy tied the game, 1-1. Sam Reinhart then scored a power-play goal to regain the lead, 2-1. In the third period, Vegas scored three unanswered goals from Jack Eichel, William Carrier and William Karlsson to seal the 4-2 victory.
The Panthers won the second meeting of the season, 2-1, on March 7 at FLA Live Arena. Ryan Lomberg scored four minutes into the first to make it 1-0 Panthers. In the middle frame, Aleksander Barkov extended Florida's lead to 2-0. Shea Theodore then scored Vegas' first and only goal of the game on the power play to make it a 2-1 final score.
HOW THEY GOT HERE
The Golden Knights defeated the Winnipeg Jets in five games in Round 1. After losing Game 1, Vegas won four straight to clinch the series. Mark Stone led the team with 8 points (3G, 5A). Goaltender Laurent Brossoit shined with a 2.42 GAA and a .915 save percentage.
The Golden Knights took down the Edmonton Oilers in six games in Round 2. After a back-and-forth series that went 1-1, 2-1, 2-2, then 3-2, Vegas was able to get it done in six in enemy territory. Eichel was Vegas' points leader with 9 (3G, 6A). After Brossoit suffered an injury in the first period of Game 3, Adin Hill stepped in and finished out the series with a 2.19 GAA and a .934 save percentage.
The Golden Knights ousted the Stars in six games in the Western Conference Final. They took a 3-0 series lead, then lost two in a row as Dallas forced a Game 6. Vegas dominated in a 6-0 shutout win in Game 6, which crowned them the Western Conference Champions. Jonathan Marchessault led the way with 7 points (4G, 3A). Hill recorded shutouts in Game 3 and Game 6 and finished with a 1.99 GAA and a .939 save percentage.
The Panthers took down the Presidents' Trophy winner Boston Bruins in Game 7 overtime in Round 1. The Bruins went up 3-1 in the series, but Florida won three straight to eliminate Boston from their historic run. Matthew Tkachuk led the club in points with 11 (5G, 6A). Sergei Bobrovsky notched a 3.94 GAA and a .891 save percentage.
In Round 2, the Panthers eliminated the Toronto Maple Leafs in five games. Florida went up 3-0 and Toronto only managed to win Game 4. Aaron Ekblad (1G, 4A) tied Tkachuk (5A) for points leader, each with 5. Bobrovsky finished the series with a 1.89 GAA and a .943 save percentage.
The Panthers went on to sweep the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final. Game 1 went to quadruple overtime, which was the longest game in history for both franchises. Tkachuk was once again the team's leader in points with 5 (4G, 1A) including three game-winning goals. Bobrovsky put up a 1.12 GAA and a .966 save percentage in the series.
NOTABLE STATSPlayoff points leaders:Vegas -
Jack Eichel - 18 points (6G, 12A)
Jonathan Marchessault - 17 points (9G, 8A)
Mark Stone - 15 points (6G, 9A)
Florida -
Matthew Tkachuk - 21 points (9G, 12A)
Carter Verhaeghe - 15 points (6G, 9A)
Aleksander Barkov - 14 points (4G, 10A)
Goaltending comparison:Vegas -
Adin Hill - 2.07 GAA, .937 SV%
Florida -
Sergei Bobrovsky - 2.21 GAA, .935 SV%
