Stanley Cup Final Set: Florida Panthers at Vegas Golden Knights

With the Vegas Golden Knights dominating the Dallas Stars in Game 6 of the Western Conference finals on Monday night, the Florida Panthers now know who they will be playing in the Stanley Cup Final.

The 2023 Cup Final will now start Saturday night at 8 p.m. in Las Vegas as the Panthers visit the host Golden Knights.

The Panthers do not have the best history against the Knights, starting with the team’s expansion draft in 2017.

Florida has never won a game in Vegas, going 0-4-1 against the Knights in Nevada with Jonathan Marchessault and Reilly Smith usually enjoying their games against their former team.

Ever since Marchessault and Smith went to the Knights — we’ll get to the reasons later — they have played well whenever they have faced the Panthers.

In 10 games against Florida, Marchessault has 2 goals and 5 points; Smith has 4 goals and 8 points in 9 games.

One reason the Panthers have struggled in Vegas is not because they spent too much time enjoying their time there, but that the Knights are pretty darned good.

This will be Vegas’ second trip to the Final in its six-year existence; The Knights have only missed the playoffs once and it happened last season, costing Pete DeBoer his job as Bruce Cassidy was hired after being fired in Boston.

Florida coach Paul Maurice noted his Winnipeg Jets did not have much success against the Golden Knights over the years.

Maurice’s Jets lot to to the expansion team in the 2018 Western Conference finals where Vegas lost to Alex Ovechkin and the Capitals.

”They built a good team and those four lines they roll out are really deep,’’ Maurice said when Florida last visited Vegas.

“They have been a very deep team since they came in an an expansion team. And this is a very loud building. If they get anything going, the building gets lit up and energy is a real important thing.”

FLORIDA PANTHERS ON DECK

THE 2023 STANLEY CUP FINAL

FLORIDA PANTHERS AT VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS

GAME 1

• When: Saturday, 8 p.m.
• Where: T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas
• TV: TNT
  
• Radio: WQAM 560-AM, WPOW 96.5 FM2, WBZT 1230-AM (Palm Beach); WCTH 100.3-FM (Florida Keys); SiriusXM
• Panthers Radio Streaming: SiriusXM 932
• Series Schedule — Game 1: Saturday at Vegas, 8 (TNT); Game 2: Monday June 5 at Vegas, 8 (TNT); Game 3: Thursday June 8 at Florida, 8 (TNT); Game 4: Saturday June 10 at Florida, 8 (TNT); Game 5*: Tuesday June 13 at Vegas, 8 (TNT); Game 6*: Friday June 16 at Florida, 8 (TNT); Game 7*: Monday June 19 at Vegas, 8 (TNT). * – If Necessary
• 2022-23 Regular Season Series Vs. Vegas (Even 1-1): @Vegas 4, Florida 2 (Jan. 12); @Florida 2, Vegas 1 (March 7)
• All-time Regular Season Series: vs. Vegas Golden Knights lead 6-3-1
• Postseason History: First meeting
• How They Got Here — Vegas: d. Winnipeg in 5, Edmonton in 6, Dallas in 6; Florida: d. Boston in 7, Toronto in 5, Carolina in 4.