Golden Knights’ Jonathan Marchessault wins Conn Smythe Trophy

Forward Jonathan Marchessault won the Conn Smythe Trophy as his Vegas Golden Knights claimed the Stanley Cup on Tuesday.

Marchessault finished second in playoff scoring to teammate Jack Eichel with 25 points. He led the postseason with 13 goals along with Leon Draisaitl as the Knights stormed through the field to win their first Cup in franchise history.

The winger was dominant down the stretch with all 13 of his goals and 23 points coming in the last 15 games of the postseason. He assisted in the closeout game during the 9-3 rout, and scored 4 goals and 8 points during the Stanley Cup Final Series.

The Golden Knights outpaced the gutsy Florida Panthers over five games to win the ultimate prize after dispatching the Winnipeg Jets, Edmonton Oilers, and Dallas Stars en route to the Stanley Cup Final.

Despite doubts about Vegas’s win-at-all-costs trade policy and and cap situation, the victory vindicates Knights’ GM Kelly McCrimmon’s aggressive title pursuit.

Marchessault, of Quebec, is the first French-Canadian player to win the Conn Smythe in two decades since J.S. Giguere won in a losing effort in 2003, and the last undrafted player to win the award since WHA export Wayne Gretzky last won in 1988. He is one of six original Vegas Golden Knights on the 2023 vintage of the team.

The Golden Knights won their first Stanley Cup in just their sixth season since joining the league in 2017. Their failure during 2021-2022 was the only time in the team’s history that it did not make the playoffs. The previous fastest expansion team to claim the trophy, the Philadelphia Flyers of 1973-1974, won after their seventh season.

Other contenders for the award were Mark Stone (9P in SCF), Jack Eichel (26P), goaltender Adin Hill (11-4), and Panthers’ star Matthew Tkachuk (4GWG).

Vegas will feel bullish about their chances to repeat the feat in the coming seasons as superstar Eichel, top blueliner Alex Pietrangelo, and captain Stone are all under contract through at least 2026.