2022 Stanley Cup Finals

2022 Stanley Cup Finals
123456 Total
Tampa Bay Lightning 3*062*31 2
Colorado Avalanche 4*723*22 4
* – Denotes overtime period(s)
Location(s)Tampa: Amalie Arena (3, 4, 6)
Denver: Ball Arena (1, 2, 5)
CoachesTampa Bay: Jon Cooper
Colorado: Jared Bednar
CaptainsTampa Bay: Steven Stamkos
Colorado: Gabriel Landeskog
National anthemsTampa Bay: Sonya Bryson-Kirksey
Colorado: Amanda Hawkins
RefereesGord Dwyer (1, 3, 6)
Jean Hebert (2, 5)
Wes McCauley (2, 4)
Chris Rooney (3, 5)
Kelly Sutherland (1, 4, 6)
DatesJune 15–26, 2022
MVPCale Makar (Avalanche)
Series-winning goalArtturi Lehkonen (12:28, Second, G6)
NetworksCanada:
(English): CBC/Sportsnet[1]
(French): TVA Sports
United States:
(English): ABC/ESPN+[2]
Announcers(CBC/SN) Chris Cuthbert and Craig Simpson[1]
(TVA) Felix Seguin, Alexandre R. Picard (Games 1–2) and Patrick Lalime (Games 3–6)
(ABC) Sean McDonough and Ray Ferraro[2]
(NHL International) Marc Moser (Game 1), E. J. Hradek (Games 2–6) and Kevin Weekes[3][4]
← 2021 Stanley Cup Finals 2023 →

The 2022 Stanley Cup Finals was the championship series of the National Hockey League's (NHL) 2021–22 season and the culmination of the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs. The series was between the Eastern Conference and two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning and the Western Conference champion Colorado Avalanche. The Avalanche defeated the Lightning in six games for their third Stanley Cup championship in franchise history and first since 2001. Colorado had home ice advantage in the series with the better regular season record.[5]

The series began on June 15, and concluded on June 26.[5] With the Government of Canada allowing cross-border travel for fully vaccinated players and team personnel between Canada and the United States,[6][7] the league was able to return to its usual two conference alignment and reinstate its standard playoff format that was used from 2014–2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.[8] The Finals were still pushed from the usual start date in late May/early June for the third consecutive year,[9][10] this time due to a scheduled break in the regular season that coincided with the league's planned participation in the 2022 Winter Olympics,[11] though the league's players ultimately did not participate in the Olympics.[12] When NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman tested positive for COVID-19, NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly took over the presentation of the Conn Smythe Trophy and the Stanley Cup. This was the first time since 1992 that Gary Bettman did not give the presentation.[13]

  1. ^ a b "Sportsnet Announces 2022 Stanley Cup Final Coverage Details" (Press release). Rogers Sports & Media. June 12, 2022. Archived from the original on June 14, 2022. Retrieved June 14, 2022.
  2. ^ a b "The 2022 Stanley Cup Final Begins Wednesday on ABC, ESPN+ and ESPN Deportes". ESPNPressroom.com. ESPN Interactive. June 14, 2022. Archived from the original on June 15, 2022. Retrieved June 14, 2022.
  3. ^ Kevin Weekes [@KevinWeekes] (June 16, 2022). "Alongside @RadioMoser with @StanleyCup Final Game 1 on the @NHL International Broadcast. Please let us know where you great fans are tuned in from. #HockeyTwitter" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  4. ^ E.J. Hradek [@EJHradek_NHL] (June 18, 2022). "Thrilled to be back on the Stanley Cup Final call for Game 2 alongside ⁦@KevinWeekes on the NHL International broadcast. If you're watching around the globe, tweet at us during the game. Gonna be a good one!! ⁦@Avalanche ⁦@TBLightning @nhl ⁦@NHLNetwork" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  5. ^ a b "Stanley Cup Final schedule". NHL.com. September 29, 2021. Archived from the original on June 11, 2022. Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  6. ^ Schram, Carol (September 30, 2021). "Not Quite Normal: Schedule, Protocols, Kraken Among The Differences For 2021–22 NHL Season". Forbes. Archived from the original on June 27, 2022. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
  7. ^ Gold-Smith, Josh (September 27, 2021). "NHL won't allow unvaccinated players into Canada, unlike NBA, MLB". Score Media Ventures Inc. Archived from the original on June 29, 2022. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
  8. ^ O'Brien, James (July 22, 2021). "2021–22 NHL schedule: Kraken debut, return to 82 games, and more". NBC Sports. NBC Universal. Archived from the original on April 15, 2022. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  9. ^ Novozinsky, Ryan (April 22, 2022). "When do the 2022 NHL Playoffs start? Here's everything you need to know ahead of playoff hockey". NHL.com. Advance Local Media LLC. Archived from the original on June 27, 2022. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
  10. ^ "NHL announces critical dates for 2021–22 season". NHL.com. NHL Enterprises, L. P. September 29, 2021. Archived from the original on June 2, 2022. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
  11. ^ "NHL announces players will not participate in Beijing Winter Olympics". Sports.Yahoo.com. Yahoo. December 22, 2021. Archived from the original on April 23, 2022. Retrieved June 13, 2022.
  12. ^ Wyshynski, Greg (December 21, 2021). "NHL skipping Olympics because of COVID surge". ESPN.com. ESPN Interactive. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021. Retrieved June 13, 2022.
  13. ^ Sanford, Dave. "Daly hands Stanley Cup to Avalanche in Bettman's absence". TheScore.com. Score Media Ventures Inc. Retrieved July 29, 2022.