Tag: 2023 Stanley Cup Final

Charles Barkley told a hilarious story about Jack Eichel snubbing him: ‘I think he had zero idea who I was’

“He looked at me like, ‘Who the [expletive] are you?'”

It’s been decades since Charles Barkley last played a professional basketball game, but he’s still become a larger-than-life personality thanks to his various studio gigs. In fact, with his colorful personality, it probably wouldn’t be a stretch to say the retired Barkley is one of the more recognizable faces in major American sports.

But just don’t tell that to Jack Eichel.

As Eichel’s Las Vegas Golden Knights worked to take a 3-1 lead in this year’s Stanley Cup Final, Sportsnet’s Kyle Bukauskas interviewed Barkley in the box he was sitting in. Before taking a final question, Barkley relayed an amusing story about how Eichel apparently saw Barkley in Las Vegas’ team hotel and seemingly thought nothing of meeting the basketball legend.

As a credit to Barkley, he kept his cool and managed to turn the event into something funny:

Though I can’t confirm for sure, I find it rather unlikely Eichel doesn’t know who Barkley is. The young man grew up in Massachusetts and likely eventually had some kind of exposure to Barkley’s personality. Regardless of the reason, it’s hysterical that Eichel didn’t readily exchange friendly pleasantries with the basketball icon.

Video shows Golden Knights’ equipment manager deserved an assist on a goal after replacing a broken stick mid-play

A job well done by this Vegas equipment manager!

Broken sticks are a common occurrence in hockey. After all, they are thin slabs of flexible wood putting force onto nearly six ounces of hard vulcanized rubber. They’re bound to break sometime!

On Monday, during a hectic Game 2 of the 2023 Stanley Cup Final, the Vegas Golden Knights cruised to a 7-2 victory over the Florida Panthers. During the second period of the Game 2 rout, the Golden Knights extended their lead to 4-0 after Brett Howden crashed the net and came away with a sick goal.

The goal likely wouldn’t have happened, however, if it weren’t for the Golden Knights equipment manager. Golden Knights forward Mark Stone broke his stick in the defensive zone and skated towards the bench to pick up the replacement. Assistant equipment manager J.W. Aiken then grabbed a new stick and rushed over to meet Stone for the handoff.

And from there, Stone then put the puck on the tape of Howden’s stick after a nifty pass to hit the forward in stride. This cool camera angle showed how it all went down.

What a play!

Jack Eichel doesn’t think Matthew Tkachuk’s dangerous hit on him was dirty: ‘It’s a physical game’

“You’re gonna get hit sometimes.”

Game 2 of the 2023 Stanley Cup Final featured a hitting moment where it was hard to ascertain if the play was “awkward” or “dirty.” No, I’m not talking about a vicious high hit by the Las Vegas Golden Knights’ Ivan Barbashev on the Florida Panthers’ Radko Gudas — that seemed pretty clear.

I’m referring to a strange exchange between Jack Eichel and Matthew Tkachuk.

As Eichel skated out with the puck toward his blue line, he tripped and made what probably would’ve been a routine check from Tkachuk look absolutely brutal from most angles. After the game, and after Las Vegas prevailed 7-2 to take a 2-0 series lead, Eichel clarified what happened on the play from his perspective.

The star Golden Knights center admitted he thought Tkachuk landed a “clean check,” chalking it up to the randomness of hockey.

Indeed, not every hit is made equal. There are sometimes some truly savage blows that shouldn’t belong in the game at any level. This Tkachuk blow on Eichel seemed just to be a case of poor fortune, making the routine seem a lot worse than it really was. Heck, even Eichel himself thinks so.

Jack Eichel awkwardly collided with Matthew Tkachuk and the resulting hit was so brutal

This was such an unfortunate hit on Jack Eichel.

This was just a case of some severe bad luck for Jack Eichel.

In a game that already featured a vicious hit on Radko Gudas early on, Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Vegas Golden Knights and Florida Panthers was an incredibly punishing one. In the final moments of the second period, Eichel was rocked on a hit by Matthew Tkachuk, but the play wasn’t a dirty one at all.

In fact, the hit only looked so brutal because Eichel tripped into it after toe picking into the ice. The result was a really unfortunate collision between the two that looked absolutely nasty after Eichel was crunched into Tkachuk at an awful angle.

Tkachuk was given a two-minute roughing penalty and a 10-minute game misconduct in the scrum after the fact, but despite his reputation here, this hit is as clean as they come. It’s a hard one, but it turned so unfortunate only because Eichel lost his footing and fell awkwardly into it.

Thankfully, Eichel returned for the third period and even managed to help the Golden Knights score a goal in the final frame! Here’s how NHL fans reacted to Eichel’s unfortunate collision into Tkachuk.

Panthers coach Paul Maurice was so delightfully cheeky despite losing Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final

There’s no panic in sight for the wise-cracking Maurice.

Game 1 of the 2023 Stanley Cup Final proved to be a tough opener for the upstart Florida Panthers — and a clearly frustrated Matthew Tkachuck — on Saturday night.

After holding their own for two stanzas, the Las Vegas Golden Knights busted the matchup open with three third-period goals to take home the 5-2 win and a 1-0 series lead. If not for the ridiculous heroics of Las Vegas goaltender Adin Hill, the game potentially never shifts this much against the Panthers.

But, even while his team took one on the chin, Florida head coach Paul Maurice kept a positive attitude in the postgame. Maurice was so positive, in fact, that he couldn’t help but crack a few wise jokes to cut the tension.

First, he urged the gathered media to relax in his own unique way.

(Warning: NSFW language in the video below.)

Then, he made light of the referees giving the Panthers a penalty after a seemingly fast review:

And he also had thoughts on what the Golden Knights breaking a 2-2 tie meant to the Panthers. It was a pretty straightforward explanation!

Las Vegas may have landed the first punch of this Stanley Cup Final, but I have a feeling the Panthers are far from done. Maurice’s loose and free-wheeling approach to his interviews after Game 1 is an excellent sign for his squad.

Predicting the 2023 Stanley Cup Final between the Panthers and Golden Knights

The 2023 Stanley Cup Final is here!

The road to the Stanley Cup Final certainly had its twists and turns this year.

The 2023 Stanley Cup Final officially begins on Saturday night, with the Florida Panthers and Vegas Golden Knights set to duke it out for the NHL’s top prize. For the first time since the St. Louis Blues won in 2019, the NHL will see a first-time Stanley Cup winner when either the Panthers or Golden Knights emerge victorious by series’ end.

Though the playoffs did not play out in the way many expected them to, the Panthers and Golden Knights are no less deserving of being here. After all, the Panthers took down the NHL’s best regular season team ever in a seven-game series to open the postseason. An unconventional Stanley Cup Final this may be, but the Panthers and Golden Knights fought hard to get here at the precipice of greatness.

So, before the main event, let’s predict which team will win the 2023 Stanley Cup Final!

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Why these 6 players are the most important to watch during the 2023 Stanley Cup Final

The stars will be out during the 2023 Stanley Cup Final.

It’s safe to say no one was expecting this matchup in the 2023 Stanley Cup Final.

For the first time since 2019, we’ll have a first-time Stanley Cup champion after the Vegas Golden Knights and Florida Panthers battle it out to decide the victor. The Stanley Cup Playoffs are never without surprises, but you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who could have predicted this matchup at the end of the day.

MORE STANLEY CUP: The 12 NHL teams that have never won a Stanley Cup.

Even still, Vegas and Florida are as star-studded as they come in this league, with playmakers up and down the lineup. The Panthers have, without a doubt, been the most fun team to follow in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, with their newfound penchant for dramatic finishes. The Golden Knights, on the other hand, have been a strong — but steady — ship, even going back to the regular season.

But, if you’re a casual hockey fan tuning in for the first time these playoffs, you might be wondering which players are set to make the most impact on hockey’s biggest stage. So, to get you ready, here the six most important players you need to watch out for during the 2023 Stanley Cup Final.

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3 mind-blowing ways a Penguins-Blackhawks game in April forever altered NHL history

What a ridiculous domino effect we’ll look back on for years.

At the time, when the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-2 in an early April affair, we thought it was a disastrous result and only for the two teams involved. But no one could have possibly predicted the domino effect of a win for one of the NHL’s worst teams over Sidney Crosby’s playoff fringe Penguins.

Sometimes, when you least expect it, a seemingly normal late-season game can mean so much to the rest of the league.

Now, with the 2023 Stanley Cup Final matchup finally almost set in stone, let’s look back at three mind-blowing ways one Penguins-Blackhawks regular season battle forever changed NHL history.

One thing seems certain: We might even look back on this game and see more butterfly-effect outcomes down the line.