Send in the brooms! Golden Knights' improbable run continues to the Stanley Cup Finals with sweep of Colorado

If you told me in March, amidst a disastrous slump in an otherwise-underwhelming season, that this team was Stanley Cup Finals-bound, I would've laughed heartily. I even remember joking to another Golden Knights fan that we'd still have the 2028 1st-round pick conditionally traded to Calgary, as there was no way the "win the Cup in 2026" condition would come true. Heck, even headed into this series, I openly acknowledged that my more logical, rational side said Avalanche in six; it was only my delusionally optimistic side that had me believing in this team's chances.

And yet, here we are. Fresh off the greatest comeback in franchise history, the pressure was on for the Golden Knights to seal the deal, and that they did. Though Mackenzie Blackwood tried his best to keep Colorado alive, Vegas was able to pressure just enough to get the win, and complete a monumental underdog victory over the Presidents' Trophy winners. Fun fact: This is only the second time we've ever swept someone! The ride may not be over, but for now, let's recap how we got to yet another incredible moment in franchise history.

"Goal" Smith etches his name into Vegas legend

Cole Smith's deadline acquisition was a slightly questionable one at the time. The bottom-six forward provided comparatively few points and played a generally low-event game, with his only known positive being strong defensive ability. Even after the deadline, he notched just two goals in 21 games, one of which was an empty-netter. Though this team needed some grit in the forward lineup, he didn't seem to do a whole lot.

And then the playoffs rolled around. Some dumb decisions aside (Smith's averaging roughly one penalty minute per playoff game, with 22 minutes in 16 games), Smith has become an unexpected source of offense for the Golden Knights, with three goals and two assists on this run. Most importantly, though, is that third goal.

A tip on a Dylan Coghlan blast (more on that later) managed to sneak past Mackenzie Blackwood and into the Avalanche net, giving Vegas a critical insurance goal with just under six minutes left in the game. With Gabriel Landeskog scoring for Colorado just a few minutes later to erase Mark Stone's early strike, Smith's goal ultimately goes down as not just the game-winner, but the series-winner as well.

That's right: Cole Smith sent the Golden Knights to the Finals. What a way for that trade to pay off! To boot, fellow deadline acquisition Nic Dowd had the secondary assist, helping the cases for both of Vegas' trades that week.

Dylan Coghlan has to stay in the lineup, right?

Dylan Coghlan has been having the run of his life in these playoffs. After entering the lineup as a replacement for the healthy-scratched Kaedan Korczak, he's now up to eight games, more than twice what he played in the regular season. But it's not just that he's playing those games, but how he's playing in them. After scoring the series-opening goal for Vegas in Game 1, he (rather poetically) helped to close it out: as mentioned previously, it was his long-range shot that Cole Smith tipped in, giving Coghlan his second assist and third point of the playoffs.

While three points in eight games may not sound too impressive, it's actually tied for second among VGK defensemen in points-per-game these playoffs, only trailing Shea Theodore. Even the advanced stats are loving his play, as he ranked fourth among all VGK skaters in game score after Game 3:

He's scoring. He's defending. He's played over both Ben Hutton and Kaedan Korczak, who're technically ahead of him on the depth chart. At this point, I'd be positively surprised if he hasn't earned a full-time spot in the lineup for the Finals, even if/when Jeremy Lauzon returns from injury.

Next up: the big one. The Stanley Cup Finals are once again in Sin City. Whether it's Carolina or Montreal that we face, once thing is, as always, certain: Go Knights Go!!

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