When do the Stanley Cup Finals start? 2023 schedule, dates and more

The Stanley Cup Finals are the pinnacle of the hockey world and fans are wondering when they start in the 2023 NHL Playoffs. 

Even sports fans who don’t give hockey too much attention are always ready to tune in for the Stanley Cup Finals. The NHL Playoffs bring out, bar-none, the best hockey every year and you could make an argument that it’s the best postseason in any of the four major sports in the United States.

It’s been a wild 2023 NHL Playoffs to this point with the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, a historically good Boston Bruins team, was eliminated in the first round by the No. 8 seed Florida Panthers. Even wilder, the Toronto Maple Leafs finally won a playoff series — but only to lose in the next round in highly disappointing fashion.

But now fans are ready for the battle for the cup. When do the 2023 Stanley Cup Finals start, though? Let’s take a look at what we know.

When do the Stanley Cup Finals start in 2023? Dates, schedule, times

The 2023 Stanley Cup Finals are tentatively set to begin on Saturday, June 3. However, that date has not been confirmed to be locked in. In fact, there is actually a good chance that the championship series could start sooner than that.

With the Eastern Conference Finals ending in a four-game sweep on May 24 and the Western Conference Finals also having a team with a 3-0 edge and playing Game 4 on Thursday, May 25, there’s a chance that the NHL could move the series up a few days to avoid more than a week-long break between the conference championships and the Stanley Cup Finals.

We do know for sure, though, that the championship series will air on TNT in the United States and on Sportsnet, CBS and TVAS in Canada.

Who is in the 2023 Stanley Cup Finals?

While the Western Conference Finals have yet to be concluded, the Florida Panthers captured the Eastern Conference crown and punched a ticket to the Stanley Cup Finals on Wednesday, May 24 with a last-second goal that allowed them to complete a sweep of the Carolina Hurricanes. In the West, the Vegas Golden Knights hold a 3-0 lead over the Dallas Stars, likely to punch their ticket to the Finals