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The Stanley Cup Final — like any best-of-seven playoff series — is typically more of a marathon than a sprint.
That said, you’re not going to hear too many complaints about a fast start, and it’s hard to get faster than the Carolina Hurricanes.
The game got underway Wednesday night in Raleigh, with the Vegas Golden Knights coming to town after winning the Western Conference title with the help of a stunning sweep of the Colorado Avalanche.
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Nikolaj Ehlers of the Carolina Hurricanes is congratulated by his teammates after scoring a goal against the Vegas Golden Knights in the first period of Game One of the 2026 Stanley Cup Finals (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
While Vegas-Carolina doesn’t exactly rate gold by any means, it’s a matchup between two insanely good hockey teams.
NHL STANLEY CUP FINAL BETTING GUIDE: WHY THE HURRICANES ARE PICKED TO BEAT THE GOLDEN KNIGHTS
Both have different styles that make them great, but Carolina’s secret weapon is structure and quick starts.
Well, when the puck dropped in Game 1, the broadcasts hadn’t even made it through the lineups before Hurricanes forward Nikolaj Ehlers put the home team up by one on the very first shot of the series.
The Canes simply couldn’t have asked for a better start.
And needless to say, it’s the worst possible start for the Golden Knights.
Andif that wasn’t enough, Ehlers had another up his sleeve later in the period.
Both of those goals were assisted by Jalen Chatfield.
The Canes absolutely tore through the Eastern Conference en route to their third Cup Final appearance in franchise history.
Nikolaj Ehlers of the Carolina Hurricanes celebrates with teammates after a goal in the first period against the Vegas Golden Knights in Game One of the 2026 Stanley Cup Finals. (Photo by Cato Cataldo/NHLI via Getty Images)
Despite the fast start, Vegas caught a big break on a lucky bounce to cut the lead to 2-1, a goal credited to Shea Theodore.
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Carolina swept the Ottawa Senators and Philadelphia Flyers in the first and second rounds, respectively. The Hurricanes then dropped Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Montreal Canadiens before rebounding to win the next four games and take the series in five.
Game 2 is Thursday in Raleigh, then the series shifts to Las Vegas for Game 3 on Saturday and Game 4 the following Tuesday.
