A look at the greatest expansion franchises (and why the Vegas Golden Knights are one of them)

The Vegas Golden Knights have been one of the best expansion stories in hockey. Here are three similar stories to the Golden Knights in the sports world.

Seattle Kraken v Vegas Golden Knights
Seattle Kraken v Vegas Golden Knights | Candice Ward/GettyImages
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Carolina Panthers

Sure, the Carolina Panthers are an absolute mess right now. Their owner, David Tepper, splashes his drinks onto football and wrestling fans in Jacksonville. They also have a record of 66-95 in their past ten seasons. However, the Panthers were one of the most successful expansion teams in NFL history.

Their record of 7-9 in their inaugural season is the best mark in the NFL all-time. They followed that up with a 12-4 record the next season, winning the NFC West and making it to the NFC Championship game. Sure, beating the defending Stanley Cup champions in the first round of the playoffs is cute. But it pales in comparison to making the NFC Championship in only your second season.

Granted, the Panthers still don't have a Super Bowl to their name. The closest they got were two Super Bowl appearances, one where Tom Brady was Tom Brady and the other where Cam Newton didn't recover a fumble because he was possessed by Satan. However, the Panthers were a terrific success story like the Golden Knights, employing a team of "Misfits" to shock the NFL world.

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