Nevada fans rejoice — the Las Vegas Golden Knights hoisted Lord Stanley for the first time in franchise history on Tuesday night!
The Golden Knights became the quickest expansion team to win the cup, beating out the 1974-75 Philidelphia Flyers. They held the record for nearly 50 years.
After the 2017 expansion draft, Vegas became an immediate contender. Their inaugural season saw a surprising visit to the Stanley Cup Finals, falling short to Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals.
The Knights only got hungrier after that loss. They have only missed the playoffs once since their creation and already have 11 playoff wins in their short time in the NHL.
After an unforeseen firing by the Boston Bruins in June 2022, head coach Bruce Cassidy took his talents to Vegas. Cassidy led the Bruins to the playoffs all six years he was in charge, including a Stanley Cup Finals appearance in 2019.
The Knights were conducted by the members of the ‘Original Misfits,’ all of which were selected in the 2017 expansion draft. Jonathan Marchessault, William Karlsson, Reilly Smith, Brayden McNabb, and Shea Theodore were clear leaders in the locker room throughout the season.
Vegas cruised to first place in the Pacific division and were one of the first teams to clinch the playoffs in 2023.
Throughout the playoffs, Knights didn’t seem to get an even matchup the whole way through. When Vegas is on, there isn’t much any team can do. They rolled through the Winnipeg Jets in five games before facing off against the best player in the world, Connor McDavid, and the Edmonton Oilers.
Even McJesus didn’t have the answers for the Misfits questions, as Vegas took the series in six. Another six-game set against the Dallas Stars pushed the Knights into the Stanley Cup Final for the second time in their short history.
Vegas faced off against the underdog Florida Panthers.
The Misfits took over in game one. Marchessault, Smith, and Theodore all put one past Panthers goalie Sergie Bobvrosky in the 5-2 victory.
Marchessault kept his good postseason rolling, attacking the twine twice in game two. A dominating 7-2 win gave Vegas absolute control over the series, up 2-0 and traveling to Florida.
Home ice and a couple rest days helped the Panthers, as they took game three in overtime. Marchessault netted his fourth of the Finals in the loss.
Vegas came back strong in game four. They took the lead only 1:38 into the first period and never gave it up. 27-year-old Goalie Adin Hill saved the game in the closing seconds. Shot after shot was fired at him, but he stood strong and didn’t let one past him, ending the Panthers’ resurgence.
After traveling back to Vegas, Cassidy let the Misfits start in the decisive game five.
Game 5 wasn’t particularly close. Vegas was up 6-1 when the buzzer buzzed indicating the end of the second period. Then Vegas captain Mark Stone netted a hat trick in the third period to extend the lead to 9-3. T-Mobile Arena was shaking as “We Want The Cup” chants broke out periodically.
Jonathan Marchessault took home the Conn Smythe Trophy, the playoff MVP award. He finished the playoffs with 25 points, (13 goals 12 assists.) He became the first undrafted player since Wayne Gretsky to be honored with the trophy.
