The NHL has officially released the schedules for the Eastern and Western Conference Finals. The stage features a best-of-seven series that decides which team from each conference moves on to the Stanley Cup Final. 

Four teams remain in contention: the Montreal Canadiens and Carolina Hurricanes in the East; the Vegas Golden Knights and Colorado Avalanche in the West. 

The Eastern Conference Finals start on Thursday, May 21, while the Western Conference Finals will kick off a day earlier on May 20.  Both matchups have the potential to go seven games, and neither seems easy to predict.

In the Eastern Conference, the Montreal Canadiens will be facing the Hurricanes in Game 1 on Thursday, May 21. Game 2 is set on Saturday, May 23, with the series shifting to Montreal for Game 3 on Monday, May 25, and Game 4 on Wednesday, May 27. 

If the series stretches to Game 7, the Hurricanes will enjoy home advantage in the final match. This could prove vital in their plans ahead of the upcoming tie.

The Western Conference Finals between the Vegas Golden Knights and Colorado Avalanche will start on May 20 in Colorado. The Avalanche will be hosting the first two games before the series moves to Vegas.

Similar to the Hurricane, the Avalanche will get home advantage in the final game if the series goes to seven.

With the postseason set to reach its pinnacle, the contenders arrive in varied forms.

The Road to the Conference Finals

Getting to this stage was not easy for Montreal. The Canadiens weathered two series stretching to Game 7 to claw their way to a first Conference Final since 2021.

They had to push through the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round. The team needed three overtime winners across seven games to reach the second round.

Against the Buffalo Sabres, Montreal faced a similar challenge and required two overtime winners, including one in Game 7.

The team relied on exceptional performances from goaltender Jakub Dobes, center Alex Newhook, and captain Nick Suzuki.

The Hurricanes, meanwhile, have run through teams in the postseason. They swept the Ottawa Senators in the first round, before doing the same against the Philadelphia Flyers.

The Golden Knights pushed through the Utah Mammoth and Anaheim Ducks, beating them both 4-2 in the series. Despite changing coaches late in the season, the team has reached its fifth Conference Final in its nine-year history.

Colorado beat the Los Angeles Knights and the Minnesota Wild during an impressive postseason. A dramatic overtime winner and a three-goal comeback against Minnesota in Game 5 will give them confidence to go all the way.

Read more at NHL Fan Central!

Written by

Aadhya Nalla

Edited by

Sijo Paul