Conn Smythe Trophy winner for Golden Knights, Panthers debated by NHL.com

The Stanley Cup will be in the building on Tuesday for Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final.

The Vegas Golden Knights lead the Florida Panthers 3-1 in the best-of-7 series and can claim their first championship with a win in Game 5 at T-Mobile Arena (8 p.m. ET; TNT, truTV, SN, CBC, TVAS).

That is the biggest news heading into the game, but realize that the Stanley Cup always has company in the awarding process. In fact, it is the Conn Smythe Trophy, given to the most valuable player in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

RELATED: [Complete Stanley Cup Final coverage]

The race for the Conn Smythe remains a crowded field and there is intense debate about who would take the trophy from NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman to start the presentation ceremony.

So, ahead of Game 5, we revisited the MVP debate.

Not surprisingly, a panel of NHL.com writers differed in their opinions. Here are their answers, in alphabetical order:

Adin Hill

There's been a heck of a lot of talk about the goalie on the Florida Panthers. And, if they come back to win the Stanley Cup Final, I'd be behind Sergei Bobrovsky for MVP. But we can't ignore Hill, the steady, excellent hand he has been in net for the Golden Knights, the way he effectively saved their season when they had no one else to turn to, after Laurent Brossoit was injured. In 15 games in the playoffs, Hill has a 2.11 goals-against average, a .934 save percentage and has given the team plenty of confidence. Hill has allowed two goals to the Panthers in each of the Golden Knights' wins and three in their loss in Game 3, the final goal coming in overtime. That's exactly what a goalie has to do to get his team across the finish line and win the Stanley Cup. His goaltending might not be getting the headlines of Bobrovsky or the cheers of those goals scored by Jonathan Marchessault. But, truly, where would they be without him? Not winning the Cup, I'd argue. -- Amalie Benjamin, staff writer

Jonathan Marchessault

The idea is to score goals, and no one on the Golden Knights has done it better and at more opportune times than Marchessault. The forward has 13 goals in the past 14 games entering Game 5 after not scoring in the first seven games of the playoffs. He has 14 points (eight goals, six assists) during a nine-game point streak. But it's not just that he's scoring, it's when he's scoring. Of his 13 goals, three have tied the game and six have given Vegas a lead, including three game-winners. He has scored the first goal in three games. Marchessault had a natural hat trick in the second period of Game 6 against the Edmonton Oilers in the Western Conference Second Round, tying the game, giving the Golden Knights the lead and then giving them a cushion in a 5-2 series-clinching win. He scored the tying goal in Game 2 against the Dallas Stars in the conference final at 17:38 of third period. Vegas won in overtime. -- Dan Rosen, senior writer

During a conversation with an Eastern Conference general manager Monday afternoon, the subject of the biggest difference-maker in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs came up. "Normally you look at goalies," he said. "But Marchessault's timing has been impeccable. When the games are on the line, in the playoffs during games that could go either way, he's put his stamp on games." As Dan so articulately pointed out, the Vegas forward had repeatedly done just that. Nine of his 13 goals have either tied games or given the Golden Knights the lead. When the goal is to accrue 16 wins en route to the Stanley Cup, his fingerprints have been all over the run. There have been flashes from Jack Eichel and Mark Stone and Alex Pietrangelo and Adin Hill, but no one has altered the balance of games like Marchessault. Don't take my word for it. Executives around the NHL feel that way too. --Mike Zeisberger, staff writer

No need to overthink this. Marchessault leads the Golden Knights in goals (13) and points (24) in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and he has come up big in big moments. You can make a case for Jack Eichel, William Karlsson, Adin Hill and others, but if Vegas wins the Cup, it will feel right if Marchessault is voted the most valuable player of the playoffs. This shouldn't count in the vote, but if he does win the Conn Smythe, it would be fitting. He was selected in the 2017 NHL Expansion Draft from the Florida Panthers, of all teams. He leads the Golden Knights in goals (34) and points (70) in the playoffs since the beginning. -- Nicholas J. Cotsonika, columnist

Alex Pietrangelo

Dan is right, the idea is to score goals. The idea is also to keep the other team from scoring, and the defenseman has been a key reason Vegas has been so successful in doing just that. Since the start of the previous round, the Golden Knights have allowed 2.10 goals per game, the best of the four teams in the conference finals. Pietrangelo leads all Vegas defensemen in time on ice per game with 23:33, more than three minutes more than his next closest teammate (Shea Theodore, 20:07), and is second in points among Vegas defensemen with nine points (one goal, eight assists), one fewer than Theodore. Perhaps most importantly, his Stanley Cup-winning pedigree (St. Louis, 2019) has given the Golden Knights the veteran and championship leadership it has relied on this postseason. -- Bill Price, Editor-in-Chief

Chandler Stephenson

The center displayed his value for the Golden Knights again in their 3-2 win in Game 4, helping them rebound from losing Game 3 by scoring their first two goals, including one on a breakaway 1:39 into the game. The speedy 29-year-old has five points (two goals, three assists) in the Cup Final and 19 points (10 goals, nine assists) in 21 games in the playoffs. That includes three game-winning goals (one in overtime), tying him with Marchessault for most on the Golden Knights. Stephenson plays in all situations, including being a key player on the power play and penalty kill (he's the only Vegas forward to be in the top three on the team in power play and short-handed ice time), helping Vegas outscore Florida 6-0 on special teams in the series. Stephenson also leads the Golden Knights in face-offs in the playoffs (332) and is second among their players who have taken at least 10 draws in winning 53.3 percent (behind William Karlsson at 53.9 percent). -- Tom Gulitti, staff writer

Mark Stone

Considering the Golden Knights captain missed the final 39 games of the regular season after undergoing back surgery in January, it is pretty remarkable what he has done in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Stone has 21 points (eight goals, 13 assists) in 21 playoff games. He had two goals and an assist in his second game back, helping the Golden Knights to an important 5-2 win against the Winnipeg Jets to tie the best-of-7 first-round series 1-1, and has not looked back.

Stone played through the physical punishment in the second round against the Oilers, had a goal and assist in a 6-4 win in Game 1, and scored a massive power-play goal in Game 5 to tie it 2-2 on the way to a 4-3 win.

The victory was the turning point in the series, which Vegas went on to win in six games. His timely scoring continued through the conference final and the Cup Final. -- Derek Van Diest, staff writer

Matthew Tkachuk

Yes, I realize the Panthers may not come back from the 3-1 deficit they're facing to win the Stanley Cup. Even if they don't, it's hard for me not to consider the Florida forward a Conn Smythe winner. Look at what he's done: 24 points (11 goals, 13 assists) in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, tied for first in points with Marchessault (13 goals, 11 assists) and Roope Hintz of the Stars (10 goals, 14 assists). He leads the Panthers with four power-play goals and four game-winning goals, including three in overtime, in the postseason. He's averaging 21:38 minutes of ice time per game. Tkachuk has been a beast and is clearly fighting some sort of injury; he was sitting on the bench for nearly 11 minutes of the third period when the Panthers trailed 3-2 in Game 4 Saturday. But there he was at the end of the game, nearly tying it with a last-second effort. If Tkachuk won the Conn Smythe and the Panthers didn't come back, he would be the first to win it from a losing team since goaltender Jean-Sebastien Giguere of the Anaheim Ducks did it in 2003. -- Tracey Myers, staff writer