3 Things to Watch: Golden Knights at Hurricanes, Game 1 of Stanley Cup Final

(1P) Vegas Golden Knights at (1M) Carolina Hurricanes

Stanley Cup Final, Game 1

8 p.m. ET; ABC, SN, TVAS, CBC

RALEIGH, N.C. -- The Carolina Hurricanes and Vegas Golden Knights have arrived at the Stanley Cup Final carrying impressive winning streaks.

One will extend its streak Tuesday, when Vegas and Carolina play Game 1 at Lenovo Center, the first time a Stanley Cup Final game will be played in the building since June 19, 2006.

"We've got the biggest opportunity right now in our lives and we've just got to use it the right way," Hurricanes forward Andrei Svechnikov said.

The Hurricanes got here by winning four games in a row against the Montreal Canadiens in the Eastern Conference Final, pushing their record in the Stanley Cup Playoffs to 12-1. 

They have reached the Stanley Cup Final in the fewest number of games played since 1987, the first year the NHL's playoff format required winning four best-of-7 rounds.

"I've seen people talk that we're loose," Carolina forward Jordan Martinook said. "I don't know if we're loose. We're excited. We're ready to roll. I look around at every guy in that room and I'm so pumped to see what they can do tonight."

Vegas has won six in a row, including sweeping the Colorado Avalanche in the Western Conference Final. The Golden Knights are 12-4 in the playoffs.

"I think we've had a really good few days of preparation and we're ready to play," Vegas coach John Tortorella said. "I can tell with our group. I think we're right in that fine line of having confidence but also businesslike. So, we're ready to play."

The Hurricanes and Golden Knights have been perennial playoff contenders for nearly a decade.

Vegas leads the League in playoff games played with 122 since entering the League as an expansion team in 2017-18. This is the Golden Knights' third trip to the Stanley Cup Final. They lost to the Washington Capitals in 2018 and won against the Florida Panthers in 2023.

They got back here by eliminating the Utah Mammoth in six games in the Western Conference First Round and the Anaheim Ducks in six in the second round, before sweeping the Avalanche.

"I think each team that we've played has kind of built us for the next series in terms of style of play, which I think has helped," Vegas defenseman Noah Hanifin said. "I think a big thing for us is we've gotten better as each series has gone along, which is something we're going to have to do against obviously a really good team that's hot right now in Carolina. And I just think the poise in the room, ups and downs, everyone stayed super even keeled throughout the whole process. That's due to our great leadership and I feel that's going to be critical to the series starting here in Carolina."

Carolina has made the playoffs eight straight years since coach Rod Brind'Amour took over in 2018-19 and has played 102 playoff games in that span, tied with Vegas for second in the League behind the Dallas Stars' 109 since 2019.

The Hurricanes, though, are in the Stanley Cup Final for the first time under Brind'Amour, who was a player and Carolina's captain when they won their only Stanley Cup championship in 2006. They lost in the Eastern Conference Final in 2019, 2023 and 2025.

They're here after sweeping both the Ottawa Senators and Philadelphia Flyers in the first two rounds, and defeating the Montreal Canadiens in five games in the conference final after losing Game 1 following an 11-day break between rounds.

"Each scar, each moment just drives the hunger even deeper in you," Hurricanes center Jordan Staal said. "Being a part of this core and all the scars we've gone through just brings that care factor for each other that we want it for each other that much more."

Carolina is 2-1 in Game 1s at home this postseason and 14-8 all time in the playoffs. This is the first time Vegas is opening a series on the road this postseason. It is 2-3 all-time in Game 1s on the road.

Here are three things to watch in Game 1:

1. Style of play

We all know how the Hurricanes want to play the game.

"We haven't changed in eight years," Staal said. 

Suffocating pressure, aggressive forechecking, physicality and shot volume are staples of the Hurricanes' game. They typically don't have a problem playing that way. They typically force their opponent into defending a lot and for extended stretches of time.

When on their game, as they have been for every game but one in the postseason, the Hurricanes force their opponents into mistakes that lead to more offense.

Vegas likely won't be able to relieve Carolina's pressure and stop them from playing in their end altogether, but Tortorella likes to say they're going to "inflict, not counterpunch." In this situation, that might require finding ways to limit the Hurricanes and to use that aggression against them when applicable.

The Golden Knights are content to play any style and believe they can be the better team with their skill, size and ability to defend through the middle of the ice. Putting all of that together, coupled with strong goaltending, is how they have gotten this far and how they plan to win Game 1.

"Our goal is to try to take it to them," Vegas defenseman Shea Theodore said. 

2. A matchup dipped in gold

Jack Eichel and Jaccob Slavin will forever walk together as Olympic champions having won the gold medal playing for Team USA at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan. 

Now they are on opposite sides of the Stanley Cup Final, and their team's chances of getting off to a strong start hinge largely on how they will fare against each other.

Eichel is Vegas' No. 1 center, one of the best in the world with 18 points (two goals, 16 assists) in these playoffs. 

Slavin is Carolina's No. 1 defenseman, one of the best shutdown blue-liners in the world who along with his defense partner Jalen Chatfield, is regularly tasked with limiting the opponent's best line.

They should see a lot of each other in Game 1, especially with the Hurricanes at home and able to get their preferred matchups.

"When he has the puck on his stick I feel like things slow down for him, so we've got to try to make that hard for him and make him make plays that he doesn't want to make quick," Slavin said. "It's going to be a hard matchup but a fun one."

3. Goalie duel

Carolina's Frederik Andersen and Vegas' Carter Hart have been the top two goalies in the playoffs, and have each played every minute for their team thus far.

As goaltending goes, so often does the team.

Andersen is 12-1 and first in the League with a 1.41 goals-against average and .931 save percentage (among goalies who played into the second round). Hart is 12-4 with a 2.22 GAA and .924 save percentage.

Andersen has allowed more than two goals once in 13 games. He gave up five in Game 1 against the Canadiens, and five in the next four games.

Hart has allowed 20 goals in 11 games since May 1, more than two in just two games, after allowing 17 in the first five games of the first round.

Andersen is arguably Carolina's leading contender for the Conn Smythe Trophy that goes to the most valuable player in the playoffs. Hart probably trails teammates Eichel and forward Mitch Marner in the MVP race, but a strong Final could push him over the top.

Golden Knights projected lineup

Ivan Barbashev -- Jack Eichel -- Pavel Dorofeyev

Brett Howden -- William Karlsson -- Mitch Marner

Tomas Hertl -- Colton Sissons -- Mark Stone

Cole Smith -- Nic Dowd -- Keegan Kolesar

Brayden McNabb -- Shea Theodore

Noah Hanifin -- Rasmus Andersson

Jeremy Lauzon -- Dylan Coghlan

Carter Hart

Adin Hill

Scratched: Brandon Saad, Akira Schmid, Reilly Smith, Kaedan Korczak, Ben Hutton, Jaycob Megna, Braeden Bowman

Injured: None

Hurricanes projected lineup

Andrei Svechnikov -- Sebastian Aho -- Seth Jarvis

Taylor Hall -- Logan Stankoven -- Jackson Blake

Nikolaj Ehlers -- Jordan Staal -- Jordan Martinook

William Carrier -- Mark Jankowski -- Eric Robinson

Jaccob Slavin -- Jalen Chatfield

K'Andre Miller -- Sean Walker

Shayne Gostisbehere -- Alexander Nikishin

Frederik Andersen

Brandon Bussi

Scratched: Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Nicolas Deslauriers, Mike Reilly, Pyotr Kochetkov

Injured: None

Status report

Lauzon will return after missing 10 games with an upper-body injury and will replace Korczak, a defenseman. ... The Hurricanes will dress the same lineup they used throughout the Eastern Conference Final.

NHL.com independent correspondent Kurt Dusterberg contributed to this report