The Vegas Golden Knights didn’t give the Florida Panthers a chance to get back in the Stanley Cup Finals series. Golden Knights took care of the business in a dominant fashion, beating the Panthers 9-3 in Game 5 and lifting the first Stanley Cup in franchise history.
What’s impressive is that the Golden Knights became NHL champions in their sixth year of existence. This was their second Stanley Cup Finals appearance, having also reached it during the franchise’s inaugural season in 2017-18.
Winning the Stanley Cup is a fitting end to an impressive campaign that the Golden Knights put on throughout the season. The Vegas team finished first in the Western Conference and then breezed through the playoffs before facing Panthers.
Many believed the Panthers would give Golden Knights a run for their money, but that didn’t turn out to be the case. Instead, the Golden Knights got all of their four wins in a blowout fashion, and the only loss they had was in overtime.
Vegas’ veteran forward Jonathan Marchessault ended up capturing the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player in the Stanley Cup finals. Marchessault finished the postseason with the most goals (13) while being second in points (25). The 32-year-old player is just one of six players on the current Golden Knights’ roster that played in the first season.
“It’s one of those things you work all your life for, and right now, with what we accomplished with that team, I couldn’t be more proud of our team,” Marchessault said after the game. “We’ve battled through all year, and I’m so happy for them right now.”
