5 burning questions heading into the Stanley Cup Final

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 04: T.J. Oshie #77 of the Washington Capitals and David Perron #57 of the Vegas Golden Knights battle for the puck in the first period at Capital One Arena on February 4, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/NHLI via Getty Images) /

2 of 5

LAS VEGAS, NV – MAY 18: The scoreboard displays a “THANK YOU VEGAS” message before Game Four of the Western Conference Finals between the Winnipeg Jets and the Vegas Golden Knights during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at T-Mobile Arena on May 18, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Golden Knights won 3-2. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

4. Something’s gotta give: home or road?

This postseason shares a commonality with the NBA about home and road. The Vegas Golden Knights love T-Mobile Arena. They’ve also shown up big on the road, but home is definitely where the heart is. The Celtics and the Golden Knights should laugh over a beer about home success. Sitting at 6-1 at home, the Knights seem to play to their strengths all that much more in front of the rabid home crowd. Just look at the 7-0 win to start the Sharks series; talk about feasting.

The Capitals, unlike the Knights, are the complete opposite, with nine (!) wins on the road this Stanley Cup run. 9-1 to be exact. Put that in perspective, and it’s just plain ridiculous. After dropping two straight to Columbus at home, they won two straight in Columbus. They won the opener in Pittsburgh and went on to win a series clincher in Game 6 there as well. Then they casually won both in Tampa to start the Eastern Conference Final and blanked the Lightning on their home ice in Game 7.

Something’s gotta give — that classic adage. The two runs have been so fun to watch and even more so with those stats alone. Who edges who? Is Vegas a place the Capitals just can’t win, or will the Knights find that the Capitals play their best as road dogs?

Home/NHL Playoffs