Stanley Cup Final: Capitals, Golden Knights get started

The Capitals and Golden Knights start the Stanley Cup Final in Las Vegas. Updates will follow here.

The Las Vegas Golden Knights are in their first season and have home ice advantage for the 2018 Stanley Cup Finals, beginning Monday night against the Washington Capitals in Game 1 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (8 p.m., NBC).

Both teams are in search of their first Stanley Cup. The Golden Knights are the bigger story since this is their inaugural season, but the Capitals have an underdog story of their own. Washington has reached the postseason in 28 of their 43 NHL seasons but are in search of their first championship.

The Capitals reached the Stanley Cup Final once previously, falling to the Detroit Red Wings in 1998. That was before Alex Ovechkin came around. The 13-year vet led the NHL with 49 goals in 2017-2018, his seventh time topping the NHL. Ovechkin’s 12 goals this postseason ranks second only to Winnipeg’s Mark Scheifele (14).

Ovechkin and the Caps will have to take their shots against a red-hot netminder in Marc-Andre Fleury, who sports an unreal .947 save percentage and four shutouts in the postseason.

Vegas is 6-1 at home so far in the playoffs, but the Capitals are 8-2 on the road this postseason.

The Golden Knights won both regular season meetings with the Capitals this season, winning 3-0 on Dec. 23 in Washington and 4-3 on Feb. 4 in Las Vegas.

Golden Knights vs. Capitals Game 1 info

Location: T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas

Game time: 8 p.m. ET

TV: NBC, CBC, SN, TVA Sports

Announcers: Doc Emrick, Eddie Olczyk, Pierre McGuire on NBC

Online streaming: NBC Sports