By Zane Miller

The Carolina Hurricanes and Vegas Golden Knights will fight for the 112th Stanley Cup Finals, as both teams look to add their name to the list of teams with multiple Stanley Cup championships. The two have never previously played against each other in the Finals.

The Hurricanes are 1 for 2 in their past Stanley Cup Finals appearances, winning it in seven games against the Edmonton Oilers in 2006 after falling to the Detroit Red Wings in 2002’s five-game series. The Golden Knights have a similar backstory, being defeated by the Washington Capitals in five games in their first Finals appearance in 2018, before claiming the title against the Florida Panthers in 2023.

Out of the 240 potential Stanley Cup matchups that would be possible under the current playoff format, 36 of them have occurred so far.

The most common matchup out of the ones that could still be possible to re-occur is the Montreal Canadiens v. Chicago Blackhawks, as the franchises have faced each other five times, coming in 1931, 1944, 1965, 1971, and 1973.

Photo Credit: NHL