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The Carolina Hurricanes hit the jackpot in Las Vegas.
For the first time in two decades, the Canes are bringing the Stanley Cup to Raleigh after beating the Vegas Golden Knights 3-0 in Game 6 on Sunday night.
It took just over three minutes for the Hurricanes to drown out the raucous Vegas crowd as former Hart Trophy winner Taylor Hall found the back of the net for the early lead.
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Jackson Blake of the Carolina Hurricanes celebrates with teammates Taylor Hall, Logan Stankoven, Sean Walker and K’andre Miller after scoring a goal as Brett Howden of the Vegas Golden Knights looks on during the second period of Game Six of the 2026 NHL Stanley Cup Finals at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 2, 2014, Nevada. (Brian Babineau/NHLI via Getty Images)
The offense was slow for a while, but with just under seven minutes left in the second, it was Jackson Blake who gave the Canes a 2-0 lead. Vegas hardly did themselves any favors in the second period, registering just three shots on goal.
This series had been no stranger to blown leads, but they were on the side of the Golden Knights. This Carolina team didn’t let go and showed as such by killing off a key Vegas power play midway through the third.
Vegas pulled Carter Hart with about three minutes left and officially entered desperation mode, but nothing worked and Nikolaj Ehlers scored an empty-netter to start the party. Rookie goaltender Brandon Bussi continued to stand tall and preserve the shutout.
One of those blown leads was a 4-0 lead in Game 3 that Vegas erased with a goal in double overtime. However, the second might just be the difference in this series.
Jackson Blake and Logan Stankoven of the Carolina Hurricanes celebrate a goal in the second period of game six of the 2026 NHL Stanley Cup Final against the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 14, 2026. (Brian Babineau/NHLI via Getty Images)
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Bussi, who played in less than half of the Canes’ regular-season games, didn’t see the ice at all in the playoffs until he took Frederik Andersen’s place in Game 3. In the biggest game of his life, he stepped up.
In Game 2, the Golden Knights were up 2-0 with 10 minutes left in the third period, but Carolina scored three goals to take the lead. Vegas tied it to force overtime, but the extended period didn’t go their way.
Rod Brind-Amour became the 14th person to win a Stanley Cup as both a player and head coach (not including player-coaches), and the first to do so since Larry Robinson in 2000 with the New Jersey Devils.
He is also only the seventh person to win the Cup and coach the team he won it with as a player. No one had done it since Toe Blake did it with the Montreal Canadiens 70 years ago.
Jackson Blake and Logan Stankoven of the Carolina Hurricanes celebrate a goal in the second period of game six of the 2026 NHL Stanley Cup Final against the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 14, 2026. (Brian Babineau/NHLI via Getty Images)
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It’s a long-awaited breakthrough for the Hurricanes, who reached the playoffs for the eighth straight season after missing out on each of the previous nine. In that span, they had lost three conference finals and three semifinals, although they were consistently a joint pick to win it all.
This time, however, they finally fought for Lord’s Stanley and did everything they could to grab it.
