It's hard to remember, but there was a time the Vegas Golden Knights were once the underdogs of the NHL. They shocked the hockey world by making it to the Stanley Cup Finals in their first year of existence. It was one of the greatest stories in hockey history and came up just short of being the best story in sports history. However, what if it was? What if the Golden Knights had beaten the Washington Capitals and won the Stanley Cup in their first year?
The best underdog story in sports gets it's storybook ending
A win in the 2018 Stanley Cup finals puts an exclamation point on one of the best sports stories of the 21st century. Think back to the start of the 2017-18 season. Every expert and fan had the Golden Knights in the basement of the Pacific Division.
The goal was to acquire draft picks and prospects and be competitive within three to five years of their existence. The fact that they were in the Cup Finals alone was impressive; however, if they had won, it would have gone down as one of the greatest stories in sports history.
The Knights are also less aggressive with their transactions in the following years. Getting within three wins of a Cup moved the timeline for Vegas up. Instead of building for the future, they wanted to win now.
This led them to make significant moves, such as trading for Max Pacioretty and Alec Martinez. However, with a cup in 2018, there isn't this crazy desire to get back. While they may still adopt a win-now mindset, they have already achieved their top goal and don't need to get overly aggressive to get back.
What would've happened if the Golden Knights won in their first season
The Golden Knights might've continued with their original plan. They run it back and make some improvements, not to be a one-year wonder. However, there is likely a strong focus on developing players and acquiring their key players from the draft and minors rather than through trades and free agency. This will likely result in many changes, and it's possible that the Knights may not trade for Jack Eichel and probably won't win the Cup in 2023.
This Cup win in 2018 doesn't just affect the Golden Knights. It also affects Alex Ovechkin. 2018 was the crowning achievement of his career. It's erased years of heartbreak and underachieving in the playoffs. It also cemented his place as one of the best players in NHL history.
However, without the Cup, his resume has a significant hole in it. His legacy would be similar to that of Dan Marino, a great player who was never able to win the big one.
It also affects the start of the Seattle Kraken. Teams were already upset with the expansion draft rules when the Golden Knights went to the Stanley Cup. Imagine how big the outrage would've been had they won it all. They're likely to have even stricter rules in place on the Kraken's expansion draft, making it even harder for them to field a competitive team. This means the Kraken probably still haven't made the playoffs and have been a bottom dweller the past few years. Of course, this is just one possible scenario.