3 advantages for the Florida Panthers heading into the Stanley Cup Finals

The Florida Panthers have taken the hockey world by storm, reaching the Stanley Cup Finals for just the second time in franchise history.

After barely making the postseason as the East's final seed, the Panthers knocked off the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes to reach the finals, where they will meet the Vegas Golden Knights.

Let's look at how the Florida Panthers can beat the Knights to win their first Stanley Cup

#1 Matthew Tkachuk

Vegas has a few guys who can play physically and stir the pot. But none do it better than Florida Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk.

Tkachuk is one of the favorites to win the Conn Smythe Trophy, awarded to the most valuable player throughout the playoffs. And why wouldn't he be?

In 16 playoff games, Tkachuk has racked up nine goals and 21 points. Of those nine goals, four have been game-winners and three have come in overtime. His most recent game-winning goals came in games 2 and 4 of the Eastern Conference finals to send the Hurricanes home early.

Tkachuk provides so much value. He can score, assist, hit, is effective on the power play and leads like a captain. He will play a huge role in this series, no matter the outcome.

#2 More Rest

While some look at the 10 days between games for the Florida Panthers as a negative, I see it as a positive. Sure, they were on a roll and this could potentially hit their momentum but they will also be the fresher team at a crucial point.

Vegas knocked off the Dallas Stars in six games out West, wrapping their series up on Saturday night. They will have a week between games.

At this time of year, winning quickly is nearly as important as winning. It is rare that a team wins each round in six or seven games and goes on to win the Stanley Cup. Along the way, teams need to find ways to earn breaks, and the Florida Panthers have done that.

Florida defeated Boston in seven games, Toronto in five and Carolina in four. That is a total of 16 games, one fewer than Vegas and three behind the Stars, who were just eliminated.

For a team that plays as physically and intensely as Florida, this rest will be huge. Now, they just have to ensure they come out fast in Game 1.

#3 Sergei Bobrovsky

What a surprise, right? Sergei Bobrovsky is the only player with better odds to win the Conn Smythe than Tkachuk.

After coming in relief for Alex Lyon in the first round, Bobrovsky has been unbelievable, posting save percentages up near .960 on a consistent basis and saving 19.7 goals above expected, over 10 more than the next-best goaltender.

Bobrovksy holds a huge portion of this series on his shoulders. Goaltenders steal games in the Stanley Cup playoffs. And sometimes, they steal Stanley Cups. Will Bobrovsky be the next Andrei Vasilevskiy or Jonathan Quick? We will find out soon enough.