VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS NOTES:
2023 STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS – STANLEY CUP FINAL – VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS VS. FLORIDA PANTHERS
Golden Knights 2022-23 Regular Season Record: 51-22-9, 111 points (25-15-1 at Home, 26-7-8 on Road)
DATE RESULT VGK GOALS VGK GOALIE FLA GOALIE
June 3 Vegas 5, Florida 2 81, 27, 2, 61, 19 Hill Bobrovsky
June 5 Vegas 7, Florida 2 81(2), 23, 10, 21(2), 22 Hill Bobrovsky/Lyon
DATE OPPONENT TIME (PT) TELEVISION RADIO SPANISH RADIO
June 8 at Florida Panthers 5 p.m. TNT Fox Sports 98.9 FM/1340 AM Deportes 1460 AM
June 10 at Florida Panthers 5 p.m. TNT Fox Sports 98.9 FM/1340 AM Deportes 1460 AM
*June 13 vs. Florida Panthers 5 p.m. TNT Fox Sports 98.9 FM/1340 AM Deportes 1460 AM
*June 16 at Florida Panthers 5 p.m. TNT Fox Sports 98.9 FM/1340 AM Deportes 1460 AM
*June 19 vs. Florida Panthers 5 p.m. TNT Fox Sports 98.9 FM/1340 AM Deportes 1460 AM
*If Necessary
VGK/FLA – Regular Season Recap
The Vegas Golden Knights split the regular season series with the Florida Panthers 1-1-0. Vegas and Florida first met in January at TMobile Arena where the Golden Knights erased a 2-1 deficit in the third period to claim a 4-2 win. Nick Cousins and Nicolas Roy each scored to keep the game level but Sam Reinhart scored in the second to give Florida a 2-1 lead heading into the third period. In the final frame, it was all Vegas as Jack Eichel, William Carrier and William Karlsson sealed the 4-2 victory for the Golden Knights. In their second meeting Florida came out on top and pounced out to a 1-0 lead on a Ryan Lomberg goal less than five minutes into the contest. Florida added to the lead four minutes into the middle frame as Aleksandr Barkov made it a 2-0 game. Shea Theodore got the Golden Knights on the board with a power-play goal at 13:23 of the period and Vegas went into the third period trailing by a goal. The third period passed without a goal as the Panthers captured the 2-1 win.
2022-23 Season FLA Series: 1-1-0 (Home: 1-0-0, Road: 0-1-0)
Date Location Result Goaltenders GWG
Jan. 12 Vegas Vegas 4, Florida 2 Adin Hill (VGK) // Sergei Bobrovsky (FLA) William Carrier (VGK)
March 7 Florida Vegas 1, Florida 2 Adin Hill (VGK) // Sergei Bobrovsky (FLA) Aleksander Barkov (FLA)
2022-23 VGK Regular Season Leaders Against FLA
Skater GP G A P +/-
Ivan Barbashev* 3 1 3 4 +1
Keegan Kolesar 2 0 2 2 +2
Jack Eichel 2 1 1 2 -1
William Carrier 1 1 0 1 +2
William Karlsson 2 1 0 1 0
Nicolas Roy 1 1 0 1 +2
Shea Theodore 1 1 0 1 -1
*Ivan Barbashev’s points include contests with St. Louis
Game 2 Recap
June 5 – Vegas Golden Knights 7, Florida Panthers 2
A seven-goal outburst carried the Vegas Golden Knights to a 7-2 win against the Florida Panthers in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final on Monday night at T-Mobile Arena. Vegas leads the series, 2-0. Jonathan Marchessault rocketed home the game’s first goal as he took advantage of an early power play to give Vegas a 1-0 lead. With two minutes to go in the first period, Alec Martinez lifted a shot past Sergei Bobrovsky to double the Golden Knights’ lead heading into the intermission. Early in the second, Nicolas Roy emerged from behind the net to bury his second goal of the playoffs and give Vegas a 3-0 edge. Five minutes later, Chandler Stephenson and Mark Stone combined to set up Brett Howden for the goal that gave the Golden Knights a 4-0 lead heading into the third. Anton Lundell got the Panthers on the board early in the final frame but Marchessault and Michael Amadio scored back-to-back goals to make it 6-1 Golden Knights. After Matthew Tkachuk got his first of the series, Howden scored the final goal as Vegas earned the 7-2 win in Game 2.
Making History
The Vegas Golden Knights’ Game 2 victory over the Florida Panthers marked the team’s 14th win this postseason, the most wins the club has ever had in the playoffs.
Cheaper by the Dozen
The Golden Knights have scored 12 goals through the first two games of the 2023 Stanley Cup Final, tied for the most by any team through Game 2 of the championship series. Vegas is the only team in the last 30 years to score 12 times. Michael Amadio’s goal in the second period of Game 2 made him the Golden Knights’ ninth different goal scorer of the 2023 Stanley Cup Final, which is the most by any team in NHL history through the opening two contests of a Final.
Lucky Seven
Vegas became the third team in the past decade to score seven goals in a Stanley Cup Final game, joining the 2022 Avalanche (Game 2) and Bruce Cassidy’s 2019 Bruins (Game 3). The Golden Knights are the first team in 15 years to score five or more goals in each of the first two games of the Final, following the 2006 Hurricanes.
A True Team Effort
The Golden Knights have seen 15 of their 18 skaters on the scoresheet after just two games of the Stanley Cup Final. Jonathan Marchessault and Jack Eichel lead the squad with four points each (Marchessault: 3-1—4, Eichel: 0-4—4). Vegas has seen scoring up and down the line-up with Shea Theodore and Alec Martinez each finding the back of the net for the first time this postseason to end significant scoring droughts. Vegas defensemen have combined for six goals during the postseason and as a group lead all NHL teams with 37 points.
Welcome to Las Vegas
The Golden Knights and Panthers met for the first time in the NHL’s postseason history on Saturday night in Las Vegas. In seven alltime meetings at T-Mobile Arena, Vegas is a perfect 7-0-0 when welcoming Florida to The Fortress. The Panthers are the only team remaining in the NHL to have not won a game at T-Mobile Arena. After Game 2, Vegas improved to 8-3 (.727) at home during the 2023 postseason, a new club benchmark for a single postseason and the best home winning percentage in the NHL.
Power Surge
Vegas has scored a power-play goal in three straight games for the first time since Dec. 21-27, 2022. The Golden Knights, who ranked 18th in the NHL on the power play in the regular season (20.3%), are 4-for-11 in the Stanley Cup Final (36.4%).
Changing of the Guard
Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final was the fifth time in 12 games that the Golden Knights have chased their opponent’s starting goaltender to the bench. After Vegas netted their fourth tally from a breakaway by Brett Howden, Alex Lyon substituted for Sergei Brobovsky for the remainder of the contest. All opposing starting goaltenders who have faced the Golden Knights have been unable to maintain a save-percentage above .900 during the series. Vegas leads all playoffs teams with a 3.89 goals-against average and has scored five or more goals in their last three games.
FLORIDA PANTHERS NOTES:
BAPTIST HEALTH INJURY REPORT
- F Patric Hornqvist | Games Missed: 18
- F Eetu Luostarinen | Games Missed: 2
Total Playoff Man Games Lost Due to Injury: 30
Total Regular Season Man Games Lost Due to Injury: 239
LAST GAME
Panthers 2, Golden Knights 7 – June 5 – T-Mobile Arena
FLA Goals: Lundell (2), Tkachuk (10)
VGK Goals: Marchessault (11-PPG), Martinez (1), Roy (2), Howden (4), Marchessault (12), Amadio (4), Howden (5-PPG)
FLA Goalie: Bobrovsky (L) – 9 Saves, Lyon – 12 Saves
VGK Goalie: Hill (W) – 29 Saves
FLA Shots: 31
VGK Shots: 28
Notes: Matthew Tkachuk scored a goal to tie Dave Lowry (10, 1996) for the most single-season playoff goals in franchise history…Tkachuk’s 6 even-strength tallies this postseason are tied with Carter Verhaeghe for the team lead…Anton Lundell scored to extend his point streak to two games (1-1-2)…Anthony Duclair posted an assist, extending his point streak to three games (2-1-3)…All seven of Duclair’s helpers have been primary assists…Sam Bennett notched an assist for his fourth helper in his past six games (0-4- 4)…Bennett and Ryan Lomberg led Florida with six hits each…Josh Mahura notched an assist…Casey Fitzgerald skated in his first Stanley Cup Final game, and along with his father Tom (1996), became part of the fifth father-son duo in NHL history to skate in a Stanley Cup Final game with the same franchise…Florida out-hit Vegas 44-24…FLA PP: 0-4, FLA PK: 2-4
RECENT TRANSACTIONS:
- May 8: F Mackie Samoskevich agreed to terms on a three-year, entry-level contract
PANTHERS vs. GOLDEN KNIGHTS
ALL-TIME vs. VGK: 4-5-1
ALL-TIME ROAD vs. VGK: 4-1-0
2022-23 vs. VGK: 1-1-0
PANTHERS PLAYOFF LEADERS
Goals: Tkachuk (10)
Assists: Tkachuk (12)
Points: Tkachuk (22)
Shots: Montour (67)
Hits: Gudas (81)
ROUND 1 – FLA (4) vs. BOS (3)
GAME 1 – FLA 1, BOS 3
GAME 2 – FLA 6, BOS 3
GAME 3 – BOS 4, FLA 2
GAME 4 – BOS 6, FLA 2
GAME 5 – FLA 4, BOS 3 [OT]
GAME 6 – BOS 5, FLA 7
GAME 7 – FLA 4, BOS 3 [OT]
ROUND 2 – FLA (4) vs. TOR (1)
GAME 1 – FLA 4, TOR 2
GAME 2 – FLA 3, TOR 2
GAME 3 – TOR 2, FLA 3 [OT]
GAME 4 – TOR 2, FLA 1
GAME 5 – FLA 3, TOR 2 [OT]
ECF – FLA (4) vs. CAR (0)
GAME 1 – FLA 3, CAR 2 [4OT]
GAME 2 – FLA 2, CAR 1 [OT]
GAME 3 – CAR 0, FLA 1
GAME 4 – CAR 3, FLA 4
SCF – FLA (0) vs. VGK (2)
GAME 1 – FLA 2, VGK 5
GAME 2 – FLA 2, VGK 7
HOME SWEET HOME
The Panthers host the Stanley Cup Final at home for the first time since 1996. FLA Live Arena will play host to the NHL’s championship round for the first time in its history, as the Panthers played in Miami Arena during the 1995-96 campaign. The Cats have won four of their past five games at home this postseason, and they have scored on 34.8% [8/23] of their power-play opportunities on home ice in the 2023 playoffs. Matthew Tkachuk and Sam Reinhart have each scored a team-high five home goals this postseason, with Tkachuk pacing the club with nine home points (5-4-9). Three of Tkachuk’s five home goals have come on the power play. a 4-2 record at FLA Live Arena this postseason, and over his past four home contests, he has produced a combined Sergei Bobrovsky owns 3-1 record, .942 save percentage and 1.74 goals against average.
CATS AND KNIGHTS
While the Panthers have not won at T-Mobile Arena, Florida has come out victorious in four of its five matchups with Vegas all-time at FLA Live Arena (4-1-0), including their game March 7 of this season. In that game, Ryan Lomberg and Aleksander Barkov both scored and Sergei Bobrovsky posted a .957 save percentage to earn the win. Barkov has amassed eight points (4-4-8) over four total home-ice games against the Golden Knights in the regular season.
BACK TO THE FINAL
The Florida Panthers return to the Stanley Cup Final for the second time in franchise history and first since 1996. Four skaters on the Panthers roster have competed in a Stanley Cup Final previously – Eric Staal (2006 w/ CAR, 2021 w/ MTL), Marc Staal (2014 w/ NYR), Carter Verhaeghe (2020 w/ TBL) and Patric Hornqvist (2016 & 2017 w/ PIT). Eric Staal (’06), Verhaeghe and Hornqvist (’16 & ’17) captured the NHL’s championship. Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice coached the 2002 Carolina Hurricanes to the Cup Final. Panthers Assistant Coach Jamie Kompon won the Cup as an assistant coach with LAK in 2012, and Sylvain Lefebvre captured it with COL as a player in 1996.
