Vegas Golden Knights capture first Stanley Cup title 2023 with Game 5 rout of Florida Panthers.
- The Vegas Golden Knights hit the ultimate National Hockey League jackpot on Tuesday by crushing the Matthew Tkachuk-less Florida Panthers 9-3 to win the Stanley Cup for the first time in the expansion franchise's six-year history.
Golden Knights, the top-seeded team in the Western Conference, won 4-1 to end the best-of-seven championship series, which led to celebrations in and among the hotels and casinos along the renowned Las Vegas Strip.
While Adin Hill made 31 saves, the Vegas captain Mark Stone scored three goals, while Nicolas Hague, Alec Martinez, Reilly Smith, Michael Amadio, Ivan Barbashev, and Nicolas Roy each scored one.
The Conn Smythe Trophy was awarded to Vegas forward Jonathan Marchessault as the Stanley Cup playoffs' Most Valuable Player. Marchessault finished the series with 25 points.
For Florida, it ended an impressive run by a resilient team that squeaked into the playoffs as the final wildcard in the Eastern Conference and then beat three of the NHL's top four clubs to reach their first Stanley Cup Final since 1996.
The Panthers' defeat also came a day after the Miami Heat lost to the Denver Nuggets in the NBA Finals and ends what had been a mesmerizing two months during which both eighth-seeded teams enthralled South Florida.
The Vegas victory made good on Golden Knights owner Bill Foley's bold prediction that the expansion team would win a Stanley Cup within their first six seasons.
The NHL awarded Las Vegas an expansion franchise in June 2016 and the Golden Knights enjoyed a remarkable 2017-18 debut season, reaching the Stanley Cup Finals where they lost to the Washington Capitals in five games.
The Panthers knew they faced long odds to fight their way back into the series. Teams holding a 3-1 lead in a best-of-seven Stanley Cup Final have won 36 of 37 times.
The only team to come back are the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs, who trailed 3-0 to the Detroit Red Wings.
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Reuters
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