By David Satriano @davidsatriano / NHL.com Staff Writer
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman rang the opening bell at the Nasdaq Stock Market in New York on Friday in celebration of the Stanley Cup Final.
Game 1 between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Nashville Predators is Monday in Pittsburgh (8 p.m. ET; NBC, CBC, SN, TVA Sports).
Commissioner Bettman said he is expecting the Cup Final to be every bit as exciting as the first three rounds of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, which ended Thursday when the Pittsburgh Penguins defeated the Ottawa Senators 3-2 in double overtime of the Eastern Conference Final. It was the 27th overtime game of the playoffs, one short of the record of 28, set in 1993.
“I think it will be electric,” Commissioner Bettman said. “I think the storylines will be great and having been in Pittsburgh [Thursday] night, both the buildings in Pittsburgh and Nashville will be alive and incredible loud because the fans in both cities are great.”
The Predators were the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Western Conference and are in the Cup Final for the first time since entering the NHL in 1998. The defending champion Penguins are trying to become the first team to repeat since the Detroit Red Wings won the Cup in 1997 and 1998.
“We have an extraordinarily competitive balance,” Commissioner Bettman said. “Our players are extraordinarily gifted and committed to the pursuit of the Stanley Cup and the playoffs have been nothing short of phenomenal. Unpredictable, exciting, entertaining and we think the Stanley Cup Final will be every bit as terrific as the first three rounds.”
Commissioner Bettman also said he was excited by the arrival of the NHL’s newest team, the Vegas Golden Knights, who will begin play next season and will take part in an NHL Expansion Draft next month. The Golden Knights are the NHL’s first new team since the Minnesota Wild and Columbus Blue Jackets joined the League in 2000
“We haven’t expanded in quite a while,” he said, “but we think having a team in Las Vegas, with the great support we are clearly getting from the community, will only make our League stronger.”
(Reprinted with permission of NHL.com. Photo credit to NHL.com)
