Golden Glory: Vegas Beats Florida, 9-3, to Win First Stanley Cup

The Vegas Golden Knights won their first Stanley Cup in franchise history as they defeated the Florida Panthers, 9-3, in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final on Tuesday night at T-Mobile Arena. Vegas won the series, 4-1.

HOW IT WENT DOWN
The Golden Knights jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the opening period as Mark Stone and Nicolas Hague found the back of the net in the first 20 minutes. After Aaron Ekblad got the Panthers on the board early in the second, Vegas scored four times to close out the period as Alec Martinez, Reilly Smith, Stone and Michael Amadio lit the lamp to give the Golden Knights a 6-1 lead through two periods. Ivan Barbashev scored to give Vegas a 7-1 lead before Sam Reinhart and Sam Bennett tacked two on for Florida. Stone completed his hat trick with an empty-net goal and Nicolas Roy added another goal late to seal the 9-3 win for Vegas. It marked the first time the Golden Knights scored nine goals in franchise history.

TOP PERFORMERS
Mark Stone: Stone's hat trick was the second of his postseason career as he finished the 2023 run with 24 points (11G, 13A).

Jonathan Marchessault: Marchessault won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player in the playoffs. His assist in Game 5 gave him 25 points (13G, 12A) en route to the Stanley Cup.

Jack Eichel: Eichel had three assists in Game 5 and finished as the leading scorer in the Stanley Cup Playoffs with 26 points (6G, 20A).

Reilly Smith: Smith had two points (1G, 1A) in the win including the Stanley Cup winning goal.

Adin Hill:Hill made 32 saves in Game 5 to cement Vegas as the champions.

STANLEY CUP FINAL RECAP
Game 1: Golden Knights 5, Panthers 2 | Highlights
Game 2: Golden Knights 7, Panthers 2 | Highlights
Game 3: Panthers 3, Golden Knights 2 (OT) | Highlights
Game 4: Golden Knights 3, Panthers 2 | Highlights
Game 5: Golden Knights 9, Panthers 3 | Highlights

BECAUSE VGK WON…
When the Golden Knights win, you win! Get 31% off menu priced pizzas at Pizza Hut the day after every win using code VGKWINS on PizzaHut.com.

ATTENDANCE: 19,058 - the largest crowd in franchise history.

LOOKING AHEAD
Join the Golden Knights for the Stanley Cup Championship parade and rally on Saturday, June 17 at 7 p.m. on Las Vegas Boulevard. Click here for more details.

Cup in Six.