Stanley Cup Final Between Hurricanes and Golden Knights Feels Wide Open

The Stanley Cup Final is officially here, and it is shaping up to be a matchup between two fairly even teams.

The Carolina Hurricanes will host Games 1 and 2 as the higher seed, and they will have the opportunity to play four games at home, while the Vegas Golden Knights will only have three, assuming the series goes seven. And despite both of these teams being extremely hot, Carolina does have the slight edge.

In fact, FanDuel has the Hurricanes listed at -154 to win the Stanley Cup, while Vegas is at +128. Again, that slight edge is mostly because of home ice, but Carolina was also the better team holistically during the regular season and has not slowed down at all in the playoffs.

Now, the Golden Knights' sweeping of the Colorado Avalanche was one of the most shocking results of the entire postseason. And while Carolina handled the Montreal Canadiens in five games and looked great doing it, it was not quite as dominant or against as tough of an opponent as what Vegas just pulled off.

That is what makes this matchup so fascinating. The home-ice advantage, the momentum both teams have, the depth, the star talent, and the fact that both squads are entering this series playing their best hockey of the year.

For all intents and purposes, this is setting up to be one of the more competitive Stanley Cup Finals in recent years. These are two hot teams that are both more than deserving of being here, and anything can happen.

Regardless of the outcome of this series, it will not be a shocking one. It likely ends up being one that goes at least six games, given how tight it will be.