2026 Stanley Cup Final Preview

And then there were two.

The maniacal marathon known as the NHL season comes down to just two teams, as the Stanley Cup Final is all set. In this year's go-around, it will be the Carolina Hurricanes going against the Vegas Golden Knights in the battle for the holy grail, the most difficult trophy in all of sports, the Stanley Cup. The Stanley Cup. To kinda play off the words of Cody Rhodes, "Easy to want it, hard to win it."

So with that, let's take a look at the two teams playing for the Cup this year:

Carolina Hurricanes

Well, they did it. They finally got past the dead end known as the Conference Finals. This is Year Eight of the Carolina Hurricanes' current playoff streak, which started back in 2019, when they ended a decade long drought. The Canes were supposed to be in "happy to be there" mode that year, but they reached the Final Four that season. Following a first round exit in 2020, and back-to-back second round defeats in 2021 and 2022, the Canes reached the East Final as the team to beat in 2023, but they were swept by the Mickey Mouse Panthers. After a backwards fall in 2024 (Elite Eight loss), they were back in the Conference Finals again. Same high expectations, faced the same dead team, and lost again. At least they won a game this time.

I had said for the last three years that it may be time to close Carolina's Cup window. Yet this year, the Canes finished #1 in the East and absolutely tore up the Eastern Conference playoffs. Swept the Senators. Swept the Flyers. Only needed five to take down Les Habitants. A 12-1 record in the 2026 Playoffs. Leading the offensive storm (pun intended) is the HSB line (Hall, Stankoven, Blake), scoring a combined 19 goals. Nine of them belong to Logan Stankoven, the very player who they traded Mikko Rantanen for. The HSB line is clearly this version of the old BBC line from 2006, and fittingly, one of those 2006 Bs is the head coach now: Rod Brind'Amour.

Of course, I have to mention Frederik Andersen. 12-1 record, 1.41 GAA, .930 SV%, three shutouts. That Conn Smythe should definitely have his name on it should Carolina win this. Speaking of, Carolina has a chance at history here. Since 1987, when the NHL extended the first round to a best-of-seven format, the best championship run has been owned by the 1987-88 Oilers, who went 16-2 in their Cup run. If Carolina sweeps this series, they will surpass that record with a 16-1 tally.

Vegas Golden Knights

Where's Jesse Pinkman when you need him? They really can't keep getting away with this!

We all know the Vegas Golden Knights' story, even without talking heads talking about it over and over. Debuted as a franchise in 2017. Year One: Cup Final appearance. Year Two: Blew a 3-1 series lead in Round One, their fans piss and moan and blame "refpuck" (oh, the irony). Years Three and Four: Final Four losses to teams with Corey Perry on them. Year Five: Nothing. No playoffs. A lot of ridicule. Year Six: Stanley Cup, proving that the best revenge is living well. Years Seven and Eight see them abuse the LTIR system, with Year Seven result in a first round exit, while Year Eight saw them lose in Round 2.

This year is Year Nine, and it was shaky. The Pacific Division, as a whole, sucked, but Vegas finished on top--barely. They needed six games each to beat the Utah Mammoth (Pacific Semifinals) and the Anaheim Ducks (Pacific Final). Even so, the side-eyes were directed towards the Knights. The doubt was there. Sweeping the Colorado Avalanche silenced that.

Maple Leafs fans, are you finally ready to admit that maybe, just maybe, you were wrong about Mitch Marner? 7 goals, 14 assists, 21 points, leading the team in this run in his first year in Vegas. Jack Eichel's close behind with 18 points (2G/16A), while Pavel Dorofeyev and Brett Howden have ten goals... each. Mark Stone has five goals, but two of them were in the West Final after missing two games.

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Each team has one Stanley Cup--the Hurricanes won theirs in 2006, while the Golden Knights won in 2023. This battle will determine who gets a second Cup. This year, ABC will air the entire Stanley Cup Final for the third time under the current arrangement in the States. Sportsnet will have the Final in Canada. I sense a very interesting Cup Final between these two teams, I can see it going the maximum seven games, to be honest.