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2023 Stanley Cup Sports News

2023 Stanley Cup Finals Dates & Overview

Blake RobertsBy Blake Roberts Founder & Editor in Chief Updated: 06 June 2023
Blake Roberts Blake Roberts Founder & Editor in Chief

Blake Roberts is the founder of Betting.US and is currently heading the creative team as Editor in Chief. Born and raised in Morgantown, West Virginia, Blake is a great sports fan, with football and basketball being his favorite. He’s our trusted voice for all betting-related matters.

After an enthralling victory in Game 1 of the 2023 Stanley Cup Finals, Vegas Golden Knights will aim to make it two game wins on the bounce against Florida Panthers. Spectators inside the T-Mobile Arena in Nevada experienced an exhilarating clash this past weekend and will be gearing up for Game 2 tonight at 8:00 PM as will be the best NHL betting sites.

  • Vegas Golden Knights are the Western Conference champions and are making their second Stanley Cup Finals appearance
  • Florida Panthers are champions of the Eastern Conference, and they are also making their second Finals appearance in this competitions
  • This is the first Stanley Cup Finals since 2018, where neither team has ever won the coveted trophy in their history

2023 Stanley Cup Finals: Dates and Time

Date Game Game Venue Time
June 3 Florida Panthers 2 – 5 Vegas Golden Knights 1 T-Mobile Arena 8:00 PM
June 5 Florida Panthers vs Vegas Golden Knights 2 T-Mobile Arena 8:00 PM
June 8 Vegas Golden Knights vs Florida Panthers 3 FLA Live Arena 8:00 PM
June 10 Vegas Golden Knights vs Florida Panthers 4 FLA Live Arena 8:00 PM
June 13 Florida Panthers vs Vegas Golden Knights 5 T-Mobile Arena 8:00 PM
June 16 Vegas Golden Knights vs Florida Panthers 6 FLA Live Arena 8:00 PM
June 19 Florida Panthers vs Vegas Golden Knights 7 T-Mobile Arena 8:00 PM

2023 Stanley Cup Finals: Overview

The Vegas Golden Knights were seeded first in the Western Conference after the team finished with an impressive 51–22–9 record and accumulated a total of 111 points. Meanwhile, a 42–32–8 record in the Eastern Conference was only good enough to make the Florida Panthers the eighth seed in their division. However, they recovered well in the playoffs.

Vegas Golden Knights: Road to the Final

After a disappointing 4–1 loss against Washington Capitals in the 2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Vegas Golden Knights will be looking for retribution in what is only their second final in this competition’s history. They stamped their authority during the regular season, making them the top seeds of the Western Conference.

In the First Round of the playoffs, Vegas Golden Knights needed five games to ease past the Winnipeg Jets. They needed six games in the Second Round clash with the Edmonton Oilers to book their Western Conference Final berth against the Dallas Stars. For the second match in a row, Vegas Golden Knights eliminated their opponent in six games.

The momentum remains with them as strikes from Shea Theodore, Jonathan Marchessault, Reilly Smith, Mark Stone, and Zach Whitecloud handed them an advantage in Game 1 over Florida Panthers in the 2023 Stanley Cup Finals.

Florida Panthers: Road to the Final

Like their opponents, this is Florida Panthers’ second Stanley Cup Finals appearance. However, they had to wait a long time for it because their previous finals game took place 27 years ago, against the Colorado Avalanche in 1996. The current defending champions swept Florida Panthers away in a four-game sweep to lift their first Stanley Cup.

After finishing in a competitive group of teams, the Panthers were labeled the underdogs in the playoffs as they locked horns with the Presidents’ Trophy winners Boston Bruins in the First Round. Bruins set a new NHL record for wins after registering 64 and even for points after collecting 135 during the regular season.

They had the upper hand in the First Round and led 3-1 after four games. However, a dramatic turnaround took the seventh game to overtime, after which Florida Panthers emerged victorious. In the Second Round, they took five games to beat the Toronto Maple Leafs before sweeping Carolina Hurricanes away in four games in the Conference Final.

The Finals: On Ice

After the elimination of the Boston Bruins and defending champions Colorado Avalanche in the playoffs, Vegas Golden Knights became favorites to win the 2023 Stanley Cup. Several experts claimed that it would be a cakewalk for the Knights, but the situation changed after the Florida Panthers pulled off a couple of upsets and put their true potential on display during the Eastern Conference final.

They have lost the first game, but the Golden Knights will remember how the Panthers bounced back from 3–1 down to beat the Boston Bruins in the First Round. On the ice, Vegas Golden Knights have better Forwards. Despite having forwards like Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk, the advantage swings in favor of the Knights, who have the Williams – Carrier and Karlsson.

In defense, Alex Pietrangelo and Shea Theodore have been menacing for Vegas Golden Knights, and that is not all. The Knights possibly possess the best defense in the competition because even their third pairing of Nicolas Hague and Zach Whitecloud is robust. Meanwhile, Brandon Montour has been struggling for the Panthers at the other end, as his point drought has extended to eight games.

When it comes to Goaltenders, Sergei Bobrovsky is the Florida Panthers’ savior. The team heavily relied on him throughout the playoffs, especially during the Second Round encounter with Toronto Maple Leafs. Bobrovsky is the best goaltender in the competition, possesses an 11-2 record, and has saved 500 shots on goal, 155 more than Vegas Golden Knights’ Adin Hill. Seeing how Borovsky recovers for Game 2 of the 2023 Stanley Cup Finals will be interesting.