The NHL’s Western Conference finals matchup in the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs is set. The Central Division champion Colorado Avalanche will take on the Pacific Division titlist Vegas Golden Knights, with the winner heading to the Stanley Cup Final.
Both clubs have won a Stanley Cup this decade, with the Avs winning it all in 2022 and the Golden Knights hoisting the chalice in 2023.
To help get you up to speed before the next round begins Wednesday on the networks of ESPN, we’re here with key intel from ESPN Research, wagering info and more.
Paths to the conference finals:
Avalanche: Defeated Kings in four, Wild in five
Golden Knights: Defeated Mammoth in six, Ducks in six
Schedule:
Game 1: Golden Knights at Avalanche | May 20, 8 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 2: Golden Knights at Avalanche | May 22, 8 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 3: Avalanche at Golden Knights | May 24, 3 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 4: Avalanche at Golden Knights | May 26, TBD (ESPN)
Game 5*: Golden Knights at Avalanche | May 28, 8 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 6*: Avalanche at Golden Knights | May 30, 8 p.m. (ABC)
Game 7*: Golden Knights at Avalanche | June 1, 8 p.m. (ESPN)
*if necessary
Series odds:
Avalanche -240
Golden Knights +200
Stanley Cup odds:
Avalanche +130
Golden Knights +700
Leading playoff scorers:
Avalanche: Nathan MacKinnon (7 G, 6 A, 13 P)
Golden Knights: Mitch Marner (7 G, 11 A, 18 P)
Matchup notes from ESPN Research
Avalanche
This is the eighth time since the franchise moved to Denver that the Avalanche have reached the Western Conference finals, and the first time since they won the Cup in 2022. The Avs have a 3-4 series record in the WCF, and they’ve won the Cup each of those three times.
Colorado won the Presidents’ Trophy in 2025-26 as the team with the most regular-season points (121). They are seeking to become the first Presidents’ Trophy winner to win the Stanley Cup since the Chicago Blackhawks did it in 2013.
The Avs have an 0-1 record against the Golden Knights in their history, losing in six games in the second round of the 2021 playoffs.
Seventeen different players have scored a goal for Colorado this postseason, which is the seventh time a team has had that many (or more) players score a goal through the first nine games of a single postseason. The others: 1983 Calgary Flames, 1985 Blackhawks, 1987 Montreal Canadiens, 1988 Flames, 1988 Boston Bruins (who had 18) and 1993 Los Angeles Kings.
Leading scorer Nathan MacKinnon has a 1.44 points-per-game average this postseason, which raised his playoff career points-per-game rate (1.31 heading into the 2026 playoffs).
Scott Wedgewood’s 2.21 goals-against average is second-best among remaining goaltenders, while his .914 save percentage is tied for fourth.
Golden Knights
This is the fifth time that the Golden Knights have advanced to the round before the Stanley Cup Final, getting to the Western Conference finals in 2018, 2020, 2023 and now 2026, and the Stanley Cup semifinals in 2021 (the realignment year). They have a 2-2 series record at this playoff stage, and one Cup victory (2023).
The Golden Knights became the fourth club in the modern era (since 1944) with five “final four” berths in its first 10 seasons, joining the New York Islanders (7), Edmonton Oilers (5) and Philadelphia Flyers (5).
Expect lots of offense! Colorado has averaged the most goals per game (4.11), while Vegas is third, at 3.67.
Mitch Marner had his fifth multipoint game of the 2026 playoffs in Game 6 against the Anaheim Ducks, which ties his career high for most such games in a single postseason (2023, with Toronto).
Pavel Dorofeyev had his second straight multigoal outing in Game 6, and heading into Game 6 of Montreal-Buffalo he is the leading goal scorer in the 2026 playoffs (nine).
With his third short-handed goal of the 2026 playoffs, Brett Howden has entered into an eight-way tie atop the single-postseason leaderboard in NHL history.
