Golden Knights Hoping to Keep Hurricanes From Winning Stanley Cup

^{The Vegas Golden Knights are likely to be without center William Karlsson due to injury as they try to stave off elimination in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final on Sunday. (Photo: Candice Ward / AP)} 

LAS VEGAS – The Stanley Cup will be in the building on Sunday night at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The big question is, will it be awarded to the Carolina Hurricanes, or can the Vegas Golden Knights avoid elimination and force a Game 7 next Wednesday in Raleigh?

Vegas has dropped the last two games of the NHL’s championship series, including a 4-2 loss to Carolina in Game 5 on Thursday. The Golden Knights are now down 3-2 in the series and must win Game 6 in order to have a chance at their second Cup in four years.

Las Vegas casinos are bracing for another influx of visiting Carolina fans who are also trying to see their team hoist its second Cup – albeit in 20 years. While the Golden Knights have announced that Game 6 is officially sold out, tickets are still available on secondary markets.

The remaining Stanley Cup Final schedule includes:

• Game 6 - June 14th CAR at VGK
• Game 7 - June 17th VGK at CAR (if necessary)

All games will start at 5 p.m. (PT) and be televised on ABC.

Most Expensive Vegas Hockey Game Ever?

Before Game 4 on Tuesday, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that Game 6 would be the most expensive Knights game in history. At the time, Vegas held a 2-1 series lead with the possibility of winning the Cup on home ice in Game 6.

A lot has obviously changed since then, with the Knights instead attempting to simply extend the series after losing two games in a row.  As for ticket prices, they are a bit lower than originally anticipated because Vegas can no longer win the Cup at home. 

Prior to Game 5, you couldn't find tickets under $900 apiece. Following Game 5, there are several seating options in the $600-$700 range.

The Golden Knights are now greater than +300 underdogs (bet $100 to win $300) to bring home the Stanley Cup at Sin City sportsbooks. Game 6 is currently listed around a Pick’em (no team favored) between the two teams.

Staal Emerges as Conn Smythe Trophy Favorite

The tide has changed between Vegas and Carolina as the favorite in the series, and so have the odds to win the Conn Smythe Trophy, awarded to the best player in the playoffs. 

Golden Knights winger Mitch Marner had been the odds-on favorite online at DraftKings and FanDuel through Game 5 as the leading scorer in the postseason, but Hurricanes center Jordan Staal has taken over after tallying a goal in every game of the series and six overall. 

Staal had scored only two goals before this series began and quadrupled them to eight. At 37 years old, he has saved his best work for last, combining clutch scoring in front of the net with dominant play in the face-off circle.

He is currently listed at -125 (bet $125 to win $100) at FanDuel and -120 at DraftKings. Nevada sportsbooks prohibit betting on the Conn Smythe Trophy when Game 1 gets underway, so this market is only available outside Nevada. 

Golden Knights head coach John Tortorella is confident going into Game 6, saying “we’ll be back here” in reference to Raleigh’s Lenovo Center for a potential Game 7. For that to happen, Tortorella will need Marner and his teammates to step up again offensively in Game 6. Shutting down Staal from scoring any goals for the first time in this series would go a long way toward evening things up as well.

One key Vegas injury concern is center William Karlsson, who has been valuable playing with Marner and the team’s leading goal scorer Brett Howden. Karlsson suffered an upper-body injury in Game 5 and is likely out for the rest of the series. He had already missed 68 games during the regular season with a lower-body injury before returning in the second round of the playoffs.