Stanley Cup Finals Betting Preview: VGK Hoping to Party on Las Vegas Strip, Panthers Rested

Our Stanley Cup Finals betting preview starts with a look at the series price and the opening number for game one. The consensus series price shows Vegas a slight favorite (-130), but that’s more of the oddsmakers saying we think this series is even, but we’re giving the -130 to the home team, which is like giving three points for home-field advantage in football. The Golden Knights are currently -135 in game one with over 70% of the early moneyline wagers are on Vegas. The total opens at 5.5 (-114 over). Let’s continue our Stanley Cup Finals betting preview with a look at both teams, followed by today’s NHL predictions.

Panthers Inches Away From Failing to Make Postseason

This is why some say the National Hockey League playoffs are the best in professional sports. To start the new year, the Florida Panthers were just 16-17-4 (36 points), and light years away from the Boston Bruins who were 24 points ahead of the Panthers with a 28-4-4 record (60 points). For all the miserable decisions the Panthers have made in the past (see Dale Tallon), you have to give them credit for a move that would change the trajectory of the franchise. After an incredible 58-18-6 (122 points) 2021-22, the team decided it was time to move on from head coach Andrew Brunette who took over for Joel Quenneville after a 7-0 start.

Brunette guided the Panthers to a 51-18-6 record the rest of the way but was a massive disappointment in the playoffs after almost losing to the Washington Capitals in the first round, before succumbing to the Tampa Bay Lightning in four straight in the second round.

Owner Vincent Viola knew they needed a more experienced coach that could take them the distance. In walks former Winnipeg Jets coach, Paul Maurice whose team slipped into the playoffs by a final one-point margin over the Buffalo Sabres in the final NHL standings.

Maurice has a leadership quality and delivery that most hockey fans could listen to all day. This will be Maurice’s biggest challenge as a head coach as he looks to improve on his 36-37 overall playoff record (+781 units). Against the Golden Knights, Maurice has lost four of his five playoff meetings against Vegas.

Cup In Six

That’s exactly the words uttered by Vegas Golden Knights owner uttered from his lips to our ears. His goal from day one was to win a Stanley Cup in six years. Of course, the Vegas faithful turned that into various ‘Cup In One’ t-shirts after the franchise made a surprising run in 2018, losing to the Washington Capitals in five games.

Like the Panthers, the Golden Knights led by General Manager Kelly McCrimmon and President George McPhee, decided that it was time for a coaching change after Pete DeBoer almost led the injury-riddled Knights to the postseason last year.

Former Boston Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy wore out his welcome in Boston but was a perfect addition to a roster that needed that Stanley Cup swagger behind the bench. Vegas went from not making the postseason by the slimmest of margins last season to a 51-22-9 (111 points) 2022-23. Cassidy’s leadership led a team who has had to use five goaltenders to get to this point and that’s not including Robin Lehner who was supposed to be the start with Logan Thompson.

The Vegas brass, like Florida, has shown an incredible ability to overcome obstacles making it difficult to root against either club. As difficult as it may be, here is our prediction for the 2022-23 Stanley Cup Final.

Expect A Parade Down The Strip

The Vegas Golden Knights seem to have a few disadvantages heading into this series with goaltending being the major difference. After all, the veteran Sergei Bobrovsky is 11-2 in the postseason with a 2.21 goals against that’s backed by an outstanding .935 save percentage.

Knights starter Adin Hill is a kid at 27 years old who just got his first taste of playoff hockey because of an injury to Laurent Brossoit. Hill is 7-3 in the postseason after taking down the mighty Edmonton Oilers to shock the hockey world after every talking head, not us – who had VGK in six, picked the shiny Oilers with the best player in the world Connor McDavid.

There is something about the Golden Knights this season that feels like they’re ready to hoist the cup in front of one of the best fan bases in all of hockey. They’re seasoned, their depth is more dangerous than it was against the Capitals, and we couldn’t make a liar out of Foley who will correctly predict ‘Cup In Six’. That does it for our Panthers vs Golden Knights betting preview, we wish you the best in the final.
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