It’s not exactly a shock to see Vegas back on this stage, especially after the Golden Knights acquired former Toronto Maple Leaf Mitch Marner in free agency last offseason to pair with fellow superstar forward Jack Eichel.
But how they got here is something nobody could have predicted.
The Golden Knights never seemed to fully click during the regular season despite playing well enough to reach the playoffs. In late March, they sat at 32-26-16 W-L-OTL with 80 points — good for third place in the Western Conference, but ranking 19th in the NHL in total goals (232) and a -2 in overall goal differential. Then on March 29, Vegas stunned the league by firing head coach Bruce Cassidy, who led the team to its Stanley Cup Final win in 2023, and replacing him with John Tortorella.
The controversial move immediately paid off. Under Tortorella’s hard-charging offensive style, Vegas went 7-0-1 to end the regular season, then breezed through the playoffs:
First round: Def. Utah Mammoth 4-2Conference semifinal: Def. Anaheim Ducks 4-2Conference final: Def. Colorado Avalanche 4-0
The sweep of the Avalanche, who had won the President’s Cup with the most points in the NHL, was the loudest statement that this Vegas team is scorching hot and could absolutely take home another Stanley Cup in a matter of days.