The 2023 Stanley Cup Final was the championship series of the National Hockey League's (NHL) 2022-23 season and the culmination of the 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs. This series saw the Vegas Golden Knights face off against the Florida Panthers in a thrilling contest for the coveted trophy.
Teams' Backgrounds
Vegas Golden Knights
The Golden Knights finished first in the Pacific Division and the Western Conference with 111 points via a 51-22-9 record. The Golden Knights experienced immediate success after beginning play in 2017, reaching the Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural season and qualifying for the playoffs in their first four. This was Vegas' second Final appearance. Their only previous appearance was in 2018, which they lost to the Washington Capitals in five games.
During the offseason, the Golden Knights hired former Boston Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy as their head coach. They also acquired goaltender Adin Hill in a trade, re-signed Brett Howden, Reilly Smith, Keegan Kolesar, and Nicolas Roy, and also signed Phil Kessel, a two-time Stanley Cup champion during his time with the Pittsburgh Penguins, during free agency. At the trade deadline, the Golden Knights acquired forwards Ivan Barbashev (reuniting him with Alex Pietrangelo from the 2019 Stanley Cup champion St.
Florida Panthers
This was the second Final appearance for the Panthers. The Panthers finished with a 42-32-8 record and obtained the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference with 92 points, the lowest point total of any playoff team. During the offseason, former Winnipeg Jets head coach Paul Maurice was hired as the Panthers head coach. The Panthers made a large offseason acquisition, trading Jonathan Huberdeau, who led the team in points the previous year, along with MacKenzie Weegar to the Calgary Flames for Matthew Tkachuk. Tkachuk led the team in points this year with 109.
The Panthers made an improbable run to the Stanley Cup Final as the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference. They upset the record-setting Boston Bruins in the first round, defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs in the second round, and swept the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Finals.
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Key Players
- Florida Panthers: Aleksander Barkov (Captain), Matthew Tkachuk
- Vegas Golden Knights: Mark Stone (Captain), Jonathan Marchessault
Game Summaries
Game 1
In game one, Florida began the scoring with a shorthanded goal by Eric Staal, scored on a wrap-around attempt. Vegas tied the game on a separate power play with Chandler Stephenson setting up Jonathan Marchessault's wrist shot beating Sergei Bobrovsky. In the second period, Shea Theodore's long range shot found its way past Bobrovsky, giving Vegas a 2-1 lead. With ten seconds remaining and a faceoff in the Golden Knights zone, the Panther's Anthony Duclair picked up a loose puck and fired a wrist shot past Hill to make it 2-2. In the third period, the Golden Knights led a rush into the Panther's zone with a shot by Ivan Barbashev deflecting back to Zach Whitecloud who scored for Vegas to make it 3-2. Later in the period, Matthew Tkachuk's clearing attempt was knocked down by Vegas captain Mark Stone, who shot it past Bobrovsky for a 4-2 lead. Florida challenged the play as Stone's stick could have been above his shoulders, which would have been a stoppage of play. Florida was unsuccessful in their challenge and assessed a minor penalty. With frustrations boiling over for Florida, both Matthew Tkachuk and Sam Bennett were called for misconducts for attempting to fight some of the Golden Knights. Reilly Smith then sealed Vegas' victory with an empty net goal to make it 5-2.
Game 2
In the first period of game two, the Golden Knights scored first on the power play as Jonathan Marchessault shot through a screen to beat the Florida goaltender over the shoulder. Later in the period, with Vegas in possession in the Florida zone, Alec Martinez shot past Josh Mahura's block attempt and the puck went to the top of the net for a 2-0 lead. During the second period, Nicolas Roy gave Vegas a 3-0 lead, shooting the puck under Sergei Bobrovsky's blocker. Brett Howden then forced Florida to swap Bobrovsky for backup Alex Lyon, scoring forehand-backhand on Vegas' thirteenth shot. Following a hit on Jack Eichel, Matthew Tkachuk and Ivan Barbashev both exchanged misconduct penalties for fighting after the whistle. In the third period, the Panthers ended Adin Hill's shutout bid as Anton Lundell scored just 14 seconds in. Vegas regained their four-goal lead as an all-alone Marchessault received a pass from Mark Stone and wristed a shot past Lyon. Michael Amadio then provided the sixth goal for Vegas, beating Lyon for a 6-1 lead. Tkachuk then brought the lead back down to four as his first goal of the series beat Hill.
Game 3
Back in Florida for game three, Brandon Montour began the scoring for the Panthers in the first period as his shot from the left circle beat Adin Hill. Vegas was able to tie the game during a 4-on-3 power play when Jonathan Marchessault's shot got tipped in by Mark Stone. In the second period, Vegas gained another power play, during which Jack Eichel passed across to Marchessault who shot past Sergei Bobrovsky into the top-left corner for a 2-1 Golden Knights lead. In the third period, with the Florida goaltender pulled for an extra attacker, Matthew Tkachuk scored on a rebound from Carter Verhaeghe to tie the game 2-2.
Game 4
In game four, Vegas began the scoring 1:39 into the first period as Zach Whitecloud made a cross-ice pass to Chandler Stephenson, who maneuvered through all Florida defenders and shot the puck past Sergei Bobrovsky. Stephenson continued his scoring into the second period as a pass by Mark Stone found its way to the forward whose one-timer beat Bobrovsky for a 2-0 Vegas lead. Following soon after, William Karlsson picked up Nicolas Hague's rebound shot and gave the Golden Knights a 3-0 lead. With less than four minutes remaining in the period, Florida defenceman Brandon Montour shot the puck at the net and it deflected off Brayden McNabb and Shea Theodore past Adin Hill to cut Vegas' lead to two goals. Florida then cut their deficit to one goal as the Panthers rushed into the Vegas zone, Montour backhanded a pass to captain Aleksander Barkov whose fired past Hill from the right circle.
Game 5
In game five, the Golden Knights began the scoring on a shorthanded rush as Mark Stone outwaited Sergei Bobrovsky to beat him on the glove side. The Golden Knights doubled their lead as Jack Eichel's shot bumped over Bobrovsky's shoulder and got covered, but was quickly poked away. With the free puck, Nicolas Hague scored for Vegas. The Panthers made it 2-1 early in the second period as Nick Cousins forced a turnover in the Vegas defensive zone and passed it to defenceman Aaron Ekblad whose long range shot made its way into the net. The Golden Knights recovered their two-goal lead as a stretch pass by Alex Pietrangelo made its way to Eichel who then dropped a pass to Alec Martinez and he shot it past Bobrovsky. Reilly Smith soon gave the Golden Knights a 4-1 lead as he fired in a between-the-legs pass from William Karlsson. Stone's second goal made it 5-1 as a Chandler Stephenson-led rush led to a cross-ice pass from Brett Howden, which Stone then shot between Bobrovsky's pads for his second goal of the game. Michael Amadio extended the Golden Knights lead to 6-1 with two seconds remaining; after pushing the puck towards the Panthers goaltender and being pushed himself into the net by a Panther defenceman, the puck found its way under Bobrovsky and in. In the third period, Vegas made the game a rout, with Ivan Barbashev scoring Vegas' seventh goal of the game. Florida brought their deficit down to five when a quick shot by Sam Reinhart hit the top corner past Adin Hill. Sam Bennett then dropped Florida's deficit to four goals as his long range shot was deflected into the net. With approximately six minutes remaining in the game, Florida head coach Paul Maurice opted to go for an empty net. However, Stone scored on the empty net to complete his hat trick, making it 8-3.
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Series Statistics
Here's a summary of the key statistics from the series:
| Statistic | Florida Panthers | Vegas Golden Knights |
|---|---|---|
| Goals For | 14 | 27 |
| Shots on Goal | TBD | TBD |
| Power Play % | TBD | TBD |
| Penalty Kill % | TBD | TBD |
Broadcasting Information
In Canada, this was the ninth consecutive Stanley Cup Final broadcast by Sportsnet and CBC Television in English, and TVA Sports in French. In the United States, the series was televised by TNT under the second year of a seven-year deal in which the network gets the Final in odd years and ABC gets the Final in even years.
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