2023 Stanley Cup Final Preview: Florida Panthers vs Vegas Golden Knights

We have finally reached the 2023 Stanley Cup Final! The matchup is set as it will be the Vegas Golden Knights taking on the Florida Panthers.

The Florida Panthers are back in the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 1996. It has been a long time for the Panthers to get back to this point. And what a run it has been for the Florida Panthers going back to last year in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Panthers get swept by the Tampa Bay Lightning, trade for Matthew Tkachuk, have to fight for their playoff lives to just get into the dance, are down 3-1 to the Boston Bruins, rally to win that series and handle the Toronto Maple Leafs in five and sweep the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final. Now they are four wins away from winning their first Stanley Cup in their second trip to the Stanley Cup Final.

And like with the previous series, the Panthers will be underdogs when they face Vegas Golden Knights. The Golden Knights are on a mission to win the Stanley Cup. Owner Bill Foley promised a Stanley Cup within the first five seasons. That did not happen. But this year feels like the year. Since the start of the playoffs, the Golden Knights have been flying under the radar. In every series, some experts picked their opponent to win. It probably will happen again in the Stanley Cup Final against the Florida Panthers. Vegas has gone through a lot of heartbreak over the last four years and are ready to win. This year, the Golden Knights beat the Winnipeg Jets, Edmonton Oilers, and Dallas Stars to advance to get to this point.

This will not be an easy task for either team to win. Let’s get to the preview.

2023 Stanley Cup Final Preview: Vegas Golden Knights vs Florida Panthers

Game 1 of the 2023 Stanley Cup Final gets underway Saturday night with the Vegas Golden Knights taking on the Florida Panthers. There will a first-time Stanley Cup Champion since 2018 when the Golden Knights met up with the Washington Capitals. Both teams are very similar in how they attack offensively and play defence. The Golden Knights have better depth, but the Panthers have the better goaltender. It will be a fun series for sure.

Let’s take a dive into the series preview.

Both Teams Are Well Structured – Aggressive Forecheck v Neutral Zone Trap.

Something has to give in this series between an aggressive forecheck taking on the neutral zone trap. One of the things that have made the Panthers so good this post-season has been their aggressive forecheck. Head coach Paul Maurice has got his team playing the right way. There is a reason why general manager Bill Zito hired Maurice. Maurice has shown this Panthers team how to play and win in the playoffs. Florida is no longer satisfied with just being there.

It all starts with Tkachuk as he sets the tone for every game. But it is not only Tkachuk but it is Sam Bennett as well. You saw in the first three rounds how that aggressive forecheck can frustrate even the best defensive teams. In Rounds 1 and 3, the Panthers forced the Bruins and Hurricanes into uncharacteristic type mistakes which led to goals. You never know where and when the forecheck is coming as we saw in Game 5 of Round 1 in overtime and similar to Game 1 in Round 3 of the fourth overtime period.

The mistakes Florida forces the opposition to make end up in the back of the net. Just look what they did to the Maple Leafs. The Panthers just exposed a weakness in the Maple Leafs many have known for years that their defence needed to be better. That aggressive forecheck of Florida’s through the Maple Leafs top players off their game. Florida forced them into uncharacteristic turnovers, especially at their own blue line.

Florida used the lessons of the sweep last year to the Lightning against Carolina not allowing the Hurricanes the middle of the ice. This will be a tough task as the Golden Knights do not allow teams much in the neutral zone.

Head coach Bruce Cassidy has got his Golden Knights team playing stout defensively. Just look how they shut down or slowed down two of the best players in the world Connor McDavid and Leon Draisatil in Round 2. Not to mention how they manhandled the Dallas Stars in two of the six games, including the series clincher by completely taking away the neutral zone.

Again more on how the neutral zone trap exists later on, but Cassidy has got this team playing very well defensively. But it is not only the defencemen shutting down the top players, it is the forwards coming back. Vegas is a complete team. Everyone is buying into the system.

General manager Kelly McCrimmon made it his mission after 2020 to add a number one defenceman. He did that by signing Alex Pietrangelo. Pietrangelo has been a force on the backend alongside a healthy Alec Martinez, Brayden McNabb, and Nicolas Hague. This Golden Knights defence is big and physical.

Over the years, the Golden Knights have gotten and bigger and more physical on the backend. Lessons learned from past playoff failures. Not to mention Vegas plays aggressively in the offensive zone pinning their opponents for minutes at a time. See their Game 3 and 6 victories over Dallas. Complete domination. The Golden Knights will need to do it again against Tkachuk, Reinhart, Anthony Duclair, and the rest of the Panthers offence.

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Balance Attacked Featuring Game Breakers on Both Teams

One of the biggest game-breakers in the 2023 Stanley Cup Final is Matthew Tkachuk. Tkachuk has put the Panthers on his back, especially during the Eastern Conference Final. Tkachuk scored three game-winning goals in the series. Two of them came in overtime. The series clincher came with 4.3 seconds left in the third period of Game 4. And oh yeah Tkachuk factored in on the game-winning goal by Sam Reinhart in Game 3.

Tkachuk was everywhere in the series. He leads the Panthers in points in the post-season with 21 (nine goals and 12 assists). Those 21 points are a new Panthers franchise record for the playoffs. What Tkachuk is doing is the exact reason why general manager Bill Zito traded for him. We saw what he did in the first round against Boston. Even with his point total down against Toronto he was still an agitator by playing his physical style. Similar to Sam Bennett.

In addition to Tkachuk, Reinhart, Carter Verhaeghe, Brandon Montour, and now Aleksander Barkov. Barkov had a great series after being quiet for most of the playoffs. Though he produced he wasn’t a true x-factor. He will need to continue his production for the Panthers to lift the Stanley Cup. But all eyes in the 2023 Stanley Cup will be on Sergei Bobrovsky.

Bobrovsky has been a machine since coming in against the Bruins. He saved the Panthers season on multiple occasions. When the opposition has been pressing there was “Bob” to make the save. Some of the saves have been ridiculous this playoff season. Two off the blocker outstretched. Bobrovsky went through a stretch where he gave up 2 or fewer goals in eight straight games. He is one of the hardest workers in the room and it shows on the ice.

But Vegas has game breakers too. Jack Eichel is one of them. Another McCrimmon acquisition. He leads the team in points. Eichel even when not recording a point is so dangerous with the puck as he creates space for his linemates out there. But it is just not Eichel, it is Mark Stone, Ivan Barbashev, Chandler Stephenson, and the Original “Golden Misfits” of William Karlsson and Jonathan Marchessault. Karlsson leads the team with 10 goals (a playoff franchise record).

Vegas can roll four lines and on any given night a different Golden Knights play can score. Then there is Adin Hill, who has played spectacularly since entering Game 3 of Round 2 against the Oilers. He has a 7-3 record, 2.07 GAA and a .937 save percentage with two shutouts. Not to mention he has made the saves when the team needed him to. Not only that he has made the timely saves. Even with that defence in front of him, he has stopped a ton of high-danger chances. Hill gives his team a chance to win each and every night.

Again Hill will be the underdog against Bobrovsky but has shown he can match save for save with the best of them. Both goalies could win the Conn Smythe Trophy if their respective teams win the Stanley Cup.

Special Teams Always Remain A Factor

Like with goaltending, special teams will play a factor in the outcome of the 2023 Stanley Cup Final.

As for the powerplay, give credit to the Panthers coaching staff for making adjustments when things were not working. They changed up personnel and systems to give their players a better chance to score. We saw that on the Game 2 game-winning goal in the Eastern Conference Final. And the series winner in Game 4. The Panthers power play is heating up at the right time and will play a big role just as Bobrovsky will.

The issue for Florida will be Vegas does not take that many penalties and in the final, the whistles tend to go away. Many thought the power play was going to help Dallas get back into Game 6, there were none to be found. Meanwhile, Vegas took advantage of their power play opportunities. Like Florida’s power play, the Golden Knights can strike at any time with the talent they put on the ice.

Panthers Hoist Cup If

They get off to a fast start. The long layoff has been a problem for teams, especially going into the Stanley Cup Final. The wave of momentum the Panthers were riding has been slowed a bit. Florida has to just play their game from start to finish. The Panthers aggressive forecheck upsets the opposition’s defence. As the Panthers have shown no lead is too big and they are named the “Cardiac Cats.” They are never out of any game. Of course, if Bobrovsky continues to play like he is and Matthew Tkachuk continues to come up clutch.

Golden Knights Hoist Cup If

Hill continues to outperform the opposition’s goaltending. It may be that simple for Vegas. But Vegas has to continue to control the neutral zone. Control the middle of the ice. Limit chances and stay out of the box. The Golden Knights are the least penalized team for a reason. They have shown when they want to do they can end games quickly. Just ask the Stars.