It’s safe to say no one was expecting this matchup in the 2023 Stanley Cup Final.
For the first time since 2019, we’ll have a first-time Stanley Cup champion after the Vegas Golden Knights and Florida Panthers battle it out to decide the victor. The Stanley Cup Playoffs are never without surprises, but you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who could have predicted this matchup at the end of the day.
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Even still, Vegas and Florida are as star-studded as they come in this league, with playmakers up and down the lineup. The Panthers have, without a doubt, been the most fun team to follow in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, with their newfound penchant for dramatic finishes. The Golden Knights, on the other hand, have been a strong — but steady — ship, even going back to the regular season.
But, if you’re a casual hockey fan tuning in for the first time these playoffs, you might be wondering which players are set to make the most impact on hockey’s biggest stage. So, to get you ready, here the six most important players you need to watch out for during the 2023 Stanley Cup Final.
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Matthew Tkachuk
Matthew Tkachuk has long been a star in the NHL, but the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs are certainly his coming-out party to the rest of the sports world. Without a doubt, Tkachuk has been the most fun player to watch this postseason, from his epic walk-off celebrations to his clutch goals, making him the true linchpin of the Panthers’ success these last few months.
Coming into the Stanley Cup Final, Tkachuk has nine goals and 21 points in 16 playoff games, leading Florida in both totals by a wide margin. It’s fair to say Tkachuk is the beating heart of this Panthers team, the incendiary catalyst for this squad both on and off the ice. Expect Tkachuk to continue being an indomitable force of nature in the Stanley Cup Final.
Jack Eichel
It took Jack Eichel eight seasons to make it to the playoffs and he’s not squandering a single moment of it. In his first-ever playoff appearance, Eichel is over a point-per-game, with six goals and 18 points in 17 games. After spending so long in Connor McDavid’s shadow, it certainly says something that Eichel is the first one to make it to the Stanley Cup Final between the two of them.
It’s not hard to root for Eichel here given the years spent toiling away in Buffalo without much success. Not only has he finally made it to hockey’s biggest stage, Eichel is thriving in his role as a key contributor to the Golden Knights’ success.
Radko Gudas
The Panthers have a lot of high-octane offensive producers, but one of the biggest reasons they’ve made it this far into the playoffs is their hard-nosed style of hockey. And no one on the Panthers embodies this style more than defenseman Radko Gudas. While you won’t be hearing Gudas’ name called for much offensively, we will no doubt be seeing him making an impact in other ways.
David Kampf heads to the locker room after this hit from Radko Gudas. pic.twitter.com/xE2by0ShDv
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) May 11, 2023
In a high-intensity environment like the Stanley Cup Final, Gudas’ intense style of play and punishing hits will be paramount to the Panthers’ success.
Mark Stone
You’d never guess Mark Stone missed almost half of the 2022-23 season due to injury with the way he’s played during the playoffs. Stone’s last regular season game with the Golden Knights was on January 12 before he was put on Long-Term Injured Reserve after suffering a back injury. But since his activation back into the lineup, Stone has posted six goals and 15 points in Vegas’ playoff run thus far.
As the captain of the Golden Knights, Stone will play an integral part in Vegas’ hopes of winning their franchise’s first Stanley Cup.
Sergei Bobrovsky
No one expected this level of performance from Sergei Bobrovsky coming into the playoffs. In the regular season, Bobrovsky posted a 24-20-3 record with a .901 save percentage, famously losing the starting job to Alex Lyon in the final few weeks before the playoffs. But since Lyon’s injury, Bobrovsky has gone 11-2-0 with a .935 save percentage this postseason in a complete night and day turnaround.
It’s no doubt then that the Panthers are where they are in these playoffs because of Bobrovsky. For a goaltender who had a career playoff save percentage of .901 coming into the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Bobrovsky has completely flipped the script on his perception league-wide with his performance this year.
Adin Hill
While Adin Hill has not nearly gotten enough love from hockey fans as Bobrovsky, he’s been no less important to the Golden Knights this season. Much like his Panthers counterpart, Hill wasn’t the Golden Knights’ starting goaltender entering the playoffs. When Laurent Brossoit was injured in the second round, Hill stepped in. Since, Hill has put up a 7-3-0 record with a .937 save percentage.
Even more impressive? This year is Hill’s first-ever playoff action in his career. To help carry the Golden Knights past some tough opponents is impressive enough as it is, but Hill has gone above and beyond what anyone expected of him this postseason, that’s for sure.
