Tortorella's Bunch Did It Again

Key Takeaways: - Vegas beat Colorado 2-1 on May 26 at T-Mobile Arena to clinch their third Stanley Cup Final trip in nine seasons. - Mark Stone returned from a five-game absence with a lower-body injury and scored in back-to-back games, including the Game 4 opener. - John Tortorella took over March 29, went 7-0-1 down the stretch, and became the third coach in NHL history to reach the Cup Final after taking over in the final 10 games. - The Knights have had a strong playoff performance and now have the advantage of resting while the Eastern teams compete.

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You fired your Cup-winning coach with eight games left in the season. Your best player misses five games with a lower-body injury.

You're playing the best regular-season team in hockey, a squad that ran away with the Presidents' Trophy like it was February.

And you sweep them anyway.

The Vegas Golden Knights closed out the Colorado Avalanche 2-1 on May 26 at T-Mobile Arena, booking their third trip to the Stanley Cup Final in nine seasons of existence. nhl.com This is not supposed to happen.

Not like this. Not in four.

Mark Stone Stays Clutch When It Counts

He missed five games.

Lower-body. The kind of injury that lingers and lingers and then surprises you when a guy suits up again. Stone came back for Game 3, had a goal and an assist in a win, and kept rolling. In Game 4 he opened the scoring on a breakaway in the first period, clean finish, just him and the puck and whatever's left of the Avs' confidence.

That's who he is. The research does not lie: five games out, back for two, producing in both. Vegas does not win this series without him. Stone's two-way game down the middle is a big reason why. espn.com

Tortorella Rewrites His Own Story

Here's the part nobody saw coming, even people who've watched this sport for decades. John Tortorella took over this team on March 29, replacing Bruce Cassidy. And went 7-0-1 down the stretch to close the regular season. Seven wins, one loss in extras, and then four more in the postseason.

He is now the third coach in NHL history to lead his team to the Cup Final after taking over in the final 10 games of the season.

Think about that. He won the Cup with Tampa Bay years ago.

Years between raising that trophy and standing on the edge of doing it again.

Paul Maurice did it the long way too, losing with Carolina back in 2002 and finally getting back with Florida in 2023.

But Tortorella's path is stranger. He was written off. His style was called outdated. He took a team that fired its coach mid-drive and dragged it to the biggest stage in hockey.

What's Next for the Knights

They have the advantage of resting while the Eastern teams compete.

Carolina and Montreal are beating each other up in the East, trading body checks and probably wearing down their goaltending. And Vegas sits in the desert sharpening their skates and getting healthy.

Nobody in that Eastern Conference wants to see the Golden Knights fresh and rested.

This franchise has made the Cup Final three times since 2018. They lost to Washington in five games in their inaugural season. They beat Florida in five games in 2023 and brought the trophy home. That is a track record that should terrify whoever comes out of that bracket.

The wait for Tortorella ends now. Years since Tampa Bay. He gets his second shot at the Cup, and he earned it the hard way.