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Unlike 2023 Cup Champion Golden Knights, Hurricanes Mock Stanley Cup Unwritten Rule

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On July 10, 2026

In Team Ops

(Photo Credit: @GoldenKnights on Instagram)

The 2026 Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes are in the middle of a PR nightmare. The team that ended the Golden Knights’ dreams is upsetting the hockey world with an egregious case of nepotism. Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon added seven family members to the list of engraved names on the Stanley Cup trophy.

In 2023, Cup-raising owner Bill Foley and his son Robert were the only two Foleys to appear on the coveted award. Since the team’s inception, Robert has been an active member of the Golden Knights front office. He held the role of Chief Business Officer the season Vegas won the Cup and still works under that title as VGK enter Season 10.

Not only did Dundon break protocol, but he one-upped his brashness by etching his family names above the actual Cup-winning players. Now, fans across the league are mocking the reigning champions for having a small-market attitude in a major American sports league.

On the flip side, many argue that if they owned an NHL club and they won the Stanley Cup, they would etch whomever they damn well pleased on it. Fair, but VGK’s owner had a different mentality. Out of the 52 allotted engraved names, 27 were Golden Knights players. The remaining 25 names were the two Foleys, the entire coaching staff, front office, multiple trainers, and several individuals in the hockey operations department. Each person who made it onto the 2023 edition of the Stanley Cup was deserving and fundamental to the team’s 16-win success. Here’s the full list of names from the 2023 Stanley Cup Champion Golden Knights.

To be fair to Dundon, the NHL reviewed and accepted the list of names in the exact order submitted by Carolina’s owner. If the league didn’t see anything wrong with the Hurricanes’ unorthodox style, then the fans should take it up with the league office.

A similar occurrence happened in 2025 after the Florida Panthers won their second Stanley Cup trophy. Panthers owner Vincent Viola included four family members on the list of names on the Cup. However, it was Florida’s second championship in back-to-back seasons, in which Viola left his family off the 2024 trophy.

Maybe when Foley wins his second Stanley Cup championship, he will add his entire brood to the list of honored names. After all, it’s fully accepted by the league but still very much frowned upon by hockey fans in any city.

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The Rat Trap Shift

By

On June 13, 2025

In Game Analysis

(Credit: TNT)

The best part of Stanley Cup runs are the memories made along the way. Mark Stone lifting the Cup, William Karlsson’s parade speech, Michael Amadio’s double-OT game winner, Jonathan Marchessault’s natural hat trick, and that’s just to name a few. There’s one moment though, that may have gone underappreciated in the time since the Golden Knights won the Cup.

So, today, on the two year anniversary of the best moment in Vegas sports history, we celebrate the greatest shift the Golden Knights have ever had, the Rat Trap.

The Golden Knights had just scored their third goal of the game to take a 3-1 lead in the game, already holding a 3-1 lead in the series.

With the 4th line (Nic Roy, William Carrier, and Keegan Kolesar) along with the 3rd pair (Zach Whitecloud and Nic Hague) on the ice, the dominant sequence begins with a couple stick battle wins in the neutral zone to get the puck in deep. Kolesar’s forecheck is ferocious and Carrier helps win the puck back up to the point. Hague’s shot breaks the stick of Colin White which sets the scene for the next 90 seconds of incredible offensive hockey.

Nic Roy is the next VGK puckhandler and he goes into his patented back-and-forth puck protection mode to eventually work it back out to the point. Whitecloud, aware of the Panther without a stick, is able to survey and hands it off to Roy who has come up high in the zone. A shot heads towards Sergei Bobrovsky and the Golden Knights are easily first on the loose puck. This time it’s Kolesar who uses his big frame to protect the puck.

As this is happening, the Golden Knights begin making the first of a full line change during the shift. A nice weaving passing play sets up Whitecloud for another look from the high slot and yet again Kolesar is the first on the rebound. William Karlsson actually loses the puck behind the goal but a full speed Reilly Smith forces a poor exit and Michael Amadio makes a great play catching the puck at the line to keep it in the zone.

Stick battle win after stick battle win after stick battle win ensues and now the Golden Knights really have the Panthers on the ropes. VGK have made a full change while Florida have the same five guys on the ice, still missing one stick.

Karlsson finds some space under the goal line and finds a cutting Shea Theodore who nearly beats Bobrovsky. Florida’s clearing effort fails yet again and now Smith has it along the blue line with Brayden McNabb and Theodore flanking him. A little game of catch between the blue liners sets up the exact look the Golden Knights wanted, Theodore from the high slot with two gold jerseys screening the goalie.

The puck bounces around a bit until it falls to Karlsson who makes an unbelievable between the legs no-look pass to a wide-open Smith staring at a gaping cage. One-timer, goal. 4-1 VGK, game over, series over, the Stanley Cup belongs to Las Vegas.

It’s a 97 second shift in the offensive zone that encapsulated everything the 2023 Golden Knights were about. They smothered the Panthers in every way possible on a hockey rink and eventually wore them down to the tune of a yet another even-strength goal, VGK’s 3rd of that game and one of 71 they scored in the 22 game playoff run.

The goal officially became the series-clincher and the “Rat Trap” shift will live on forever in VGK lore.

Have fun watching the entire shift…

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Keeping Up With The Cup Tough Teams In 2025-26

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On June 11, 2025

In Team Ops

(Photo Credit: @_jkarsh on Instagram)

There’s an argument that the two teams left in the playoffs are the nastiest and toughest in the NHL. Everyone was well aware of the Florida Panthers’ frightening, even borderline dangerous, physicality. The Edmonton Oilers have nearly caught up with a gritty and vengeful roster of their own. This isn’t stale, old-school hockey mentality. It’s an effective and successful style that’s been proven year after year. To the teams who choose to ignore it, good luck trying to complete 16 wins over a brutal two months.

https://twitter.com/br_openice/status/1932269014144700688?s=46&t=r0w8Y_Kvlc-GpxszwwgyWQ

In their own right, the Golden Knights are also one of the league’s biggest and brawniest rosters. Captain Mark Stone is a huge dude who takes a village to move out of the crease. I can’t imagine any opponent willfully battling in the corners with Brayden McNabb or Nic Hague. Power forward Keegan Kolesar pounds and shoves the opposition for fourteen minutes a night.

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Happy Anniversary

By

On June 13, 2024

In Team Ops

One year ago the Golden Knights became Stanley Cup Champions!

Cup Handoff Lineup

Mark Stone -> Reilly Smith -> Jonathan Marchessault -> William Karlsson ->Brayden McNabb -> Shea Theodore -> William Carrier -> Alex Pietrangelo -> Alec Martinez -> Jonathan Quick -> Chandler Stephenson -> Jack Eichel ->Ivan Barbashev -> Adin Hill -> Nic Roy -> Phil Kessel -> Keegan Kolesar -> Zach Whitecloud -> Nic Hague ->Michael Amadio -> Brett Howden -> Ben Hutton -> Laurent Brossoit -> Logan Thompson -> Paul Cotter -> Teddy Blueger -> Brayden Pachal -> Bruce Cassidy -> Kelly McCrimmon -> Bill Foley -> George McPhee

Conn Smythe Voting

I’m a proud Golden Misfit. – William Karlsson.

It’s been a wild ride. Year one was a special, special year. The way we could create a winning culture right off the hop changed everything. We were knocking on the door for the last couple of years and we were able to break through. -Brayden McNabb

It was pretty surreal. I didn’t know how many seconds left to start throwing my stuff off. -Adin Hill

Look where we are right now. Our team has been unbelievable since the beginning. We’re winners. -Jonathan Marchessault

I can’t even describe the feelings in my stomach right now. It’s everything you could imagine. -Mark Stone

Everyone have a good night. I know I will! -Bruce Cassidy

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NHL’s Business Booming In VGK Era

By

On May 25, 2024

In Team Ops

Credit: NHL TV commercial

It’s no secret, the NHL is the least profitable, poorly marketed, and the lowest draw of all four professional sports leagues in North America. However, according to the Associated Press, business has picked up across the National Hockey League. It happens to coincide with one of the league’s freshest markets throwing one heck of a Stanley Cup championship parade in 2023.

We’ve seen an influx and a growth of female fans, diverse fans, They’re finding our product, they’re falling in love with it, they’re starting to watch more. -Kyle McMann, NHL Development to AP

Two years ago, we reported that it was estimated that 40% of Golden Knights fans are made up of women. After Vegas’ Stanley Cup championship, those numbers have most certainly increased. When you add young kids and newcomers to the sport the population of VGK’s community continues to rise. In turn, so are other NHL markets.

New fans, new franchises, and new broadcast partnerships aided the league’s latest boost in revenue and viewership. Sure, the sport may have seen a bounce back from the pandemic but let’s not forget the Golden Knights’ impact on the bottom line.

Business is booming for the NHL, which has bounced back in a major way from the pandemic. Backstopped by new media rights deals, digital dasher boards and helmet and jersey ads, and buoyed by an overlap of generational stars, ratings are up, attendance set a record and revenue is at an all-time high — an estimated $6.2 billion annually.

Trying new things, including puck and player tracking and cartoon versions of games to draw in younger fans, has set the table for this success. Decades since the experiment of the glowing puck, experts credited the league for attracting and retaining a bigger audience in a crowded sports marketplace… the league has done a good job reaching beyond traditional markets, overcoming some of the unavoidable shortcomings of being expensive to play. –Steven Whyno on APNews.com

Vegas may turn off some snobby traditionalists, but last year’s Stanley Cup Final was the second most-watched series since 2020. And in 2018, Vegas’ five game series against the Washington Capitals had the second-highest ratings since 2015. In seven seasons, hockey enthusiasts have gotten used to seeing Vegas deep into the postseason. The NHL has benefited from their competitive play.

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Defending Champions And Playoff Rematch: How Have Others Fared?

By

On April 21, 2024

In Team Ops

(Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)

When the Golden Knights take the ice tomorrow for Game 1 of the 2024 playoffs, they’ll do it in a pair of situations not many teams get to experience.

First, and most obviously, they’ll be the reigning champions looking to become just the third team in the last 25 years to repeat as champs.

History is mixed on the success of the defending champs in their next trip to the playoffs. Four of the last 15 champions have made it back to the Stanley Cup Final, with the Lightning and Penguins finishing the job and winning back-to-back. Tampa Bay nearly pulled it off for a third year in a row back in 2022 too, losing to Colorado in the Final. The other team to make it back was the 2009 Red Wings who fell in Game 7 when Marc-Andre Fleury made the signature save of his career.

On the flip side, six of the last 15 defending champs have lost in the first round and another didn’t even make it back to the playoffs. Colorado fell last year in the first round to an upstart Seattle team that scored the first goal on the Avs in all seven games. St. Louis stumbled in the bubble in 2020, while Washington (2019), Chicago (2016), Boston (2012), and Chicago (2011) all lost in the first round as well.

2023 – Colorado – Lost in 1st Round in 7 to SEA
2022 – Tampa – Lost in Cup Final in 6 to COL
2021 – Tampa – Won Stanley Cup in 5 vs MTL
2020 – St. Louis – Lost in 1st Round in 6 to VAN
2019 – Washington – Lost in 1st Round in 7 to CAR
2018 – Pittsburgh – Lost in 2nd Round in 6 to WSH
2017 – Pittsburgh – Won Stanley Cup in 6 vs NSH
2016 – Chicago – Lost in 1st Round in 7 to STL
2015 – Los Angeles – Missed Playoffs
2014 – Chicago – Lost in Conference Final in 7 to LAK
2013 – Los Angeles – Lost in Conference Final in 5 to CHI
2012 – Boston – Lost in 1st Round in 7 to WSH
2011 – Chicago – Lost in 1st Round in 7 to VAN
2010 – Pittsburgh – Lost in 2nd Round in 7 to MTL
2009 – Detroit – Lost in Stanley Cup Final in 7 to PIT

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Relive The Banner Ceremony

By

On October 11, 2023

In T-Mobile Arena

From ESPN broadcast

What a night it was at T-Mobile Arena as the Golden Knights immortalized their Stanley Cup championship by raising a beautiful banner to the rafters.

Watch the ceremony in its entirety below.

The slot machine was frickin’ cool I thought. The banner itself too, a great design. Once again they’ve done a great job here with those details of performance, art, and creativity. -Bruce Cassidy

We love living here and we love playing here. Any time you can bring up a theme to honor this city like we do. We had the Elvis wig last year and we’ll come up with something new this year to honor the city. -Mark Stone

It was an emotional moment for sure. A happy moment, especially when they started playing that song. Goosebumps and all that. (The slot machine) was very Vegas, and wouldn’t expect anything less. -William Karlsson

I haven’t seen a banner with that much detail on it before so it was really cool to see it go up. -Adin Hill

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