Three key storylines to watch in the 2023 Stanley Cup Final

On Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena, the Vegas Golden Knights will host the Florida Panthers for Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final.

Ahead of the opener, here are three storylines to monitor over the course of the series:

First Time Cup Winner

For just the third time this century, we have a Stanley Cup Final matchup that will guarantee a first-time winner. Coincidentally, this marks the second Stanley Cup Final appearance in franchise history for both Vegas and Florida. The Golden Knights lost to Washington in 2018 while the Panthers fell to Colorado in 1996. Furthermore, both head coaches, Bruce Cassidy and Paul Maurice will be taking their second shots at hoisting Lord Stanley. Of course, Cassidy’s Boston Bruins lost to the St. Louis Blues in 2019 while Maurice’s Carolina Hurricanes dropped a five-game series to the Detroit Red Wings in 2002.

Conn Smythe Race

Entering the Cup Final, Sergei Bobrovsky is understandably priced as the betting favorite/frontrunner to win the Conn Smythe Trophy. That said, there’s a plethora of others who are still firmly in the mix. Firstly, coming off a remarkable Eastern Conference Final where he tallied three game winners, Matthew Tkachuk is a legitimate contender for the dubious honor. On the Vegas side, it’s essentially a three-horse race between Jack Eichel, Jonathan Marchessault and William Karlsson. Barring something crazy, it’s highly likely one of those five will skate away as the playoff MVP. Just some food for thought: Jean-Sebastien Giguere (2003) was the last guy from a losing team to win the Conn Smythe Trophy.

Bobrovsky vs. Hill

As unexpected and random as it is, the goaltending matchup in this series has the potential to be spectacular. On one side, you have 34-year-old Bobrovsky, who’s posted an 11-2 record to go along with a ridiculous 2.21 goals-against, 0.935 save-percentage and one shutout. Meantime, since being thrust into action in Round 2 following an injury to Laurent Brossoit, Adin Hill has been just as superb. He’s 7-2-1 with a 2.07 goals-against average, 0.937 save-percentage and two shutouts. Just as we all expected, right?