Stanley Cup Finals 2023: Vegas Golden Knights vs Florida Panthers Odds and Predictions

The 2023 Stanley Cup Finals are set as the Vegas Golden Knights will face the Florida Panthers.

The Golden Knights defeated the Dallas Stars in six games to advance to the Cup while before that, beat the Edmonton Oilers in six games and Winnipeg Jets in five games.

Florida, meanwhile, stunned the Boston Bruins in seven games in the first round. They then beat the Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes in five games to advance to the Stanley Cup.

Stanley Cup odds

The Stanley Cup Final features a team from the Western Conference, in Vegas, that many thought would get there. The Florida Panthers, however, are the Cinderella story.

The Panthers were the final team in the East to make the playoffs but Sergei Bobrovsky has gotten hot and has been a key reason for Florida's success.

"He's on another planet," Florida forward Carter Verhaeghe said. "He's been playing so well this whole playoff run. I mean, seems like whenever we need a big save, he's there.

"Whenever something happens for (opponents) to get some momentum, he gets it back. He changes the whole game for us and he's been unbelievable. He's like a brick wall back there."

The Vegas Golden Knights, meanwhile, know they will have their hands full with how Bobrovsky is playing but they are confident they will hoist the Cup.

"They're a real fast team," Jack Eichel said. "Their goalie's been playing really well. Obviously, they're playing some of their best hockey right now too, so they've got some good players up front, some high-end talent, and they're tough to play against.

"So we know it's going to be a heck of a battle, and we'll be ready to go."

Currently, before Game 1 on Saturday night, the Vegas Golden Knights are -130 to win the series and the Stanley Cup while the Florida Panthers are +110 underdogs.

Although the Panthers are underdogs, it is nothing new for them as Florida has been the betting underdog in all three series.

"Kind of that similar feel of being the underdog and trying to prove people wrong again," said forward Matthew Tkachuk. "We know what we have in [the locker room]. We know how to play, we know the right way to play, we know what makes us successful.

"And being in it with the guys and seeing the belief and seeing just the calmness to us is really something special."

Golden Knights vs Panthers: Stanley Cup Final prediction

The Vegas Golden Knights have the better team on paper but the Florida Panthers have been led by Sergei Bobrovsky who is the hottest goalie in the league. Riding a streaky goalie has been a key to success for a lot of Stanley Cup-winning teams.

The Golden Knights can match Florida's physicality but I do worry about Adin Hill in net who was shaky at times against Dallas.

This series should be back-and-forth and I expect it to go seven games but I like Florida to complete the Cinderella story and hoist the cup.