Are the Vegas Golden Knights the most hated franchise in the NHL? Exploring the reasons why

The Vegas Golden Knights are once again playing for the Stanley Cup.

For the second time in franchise history, the Golden Knights are four wins away from hoisting the Stanley Cup, which is more impressive due to the fact they became a team during the 2017-18 NHL season and made the Cup Final in their first year in the league.

Since then, the expansion team has become hated for a few reasons. We'll take a look at some of the reasons why some fans think the Vegas Golden Knights are the most hated team in the NHL.

#1. Early success due to expansion draft

The most obvious reason why fans of other teams hate Vegas is the success it has had so early into being a team. Some teams have gone decades without winning a Cup or making a Cup Final, so to see Vegas already playing in its second finals rubs people the wrong way.

A big part of that was due to the expansion draft which many fans thought allowed the Golden Knights to be great right away. Vegas was able to make plenty of side deals and gave up other players, picks or prospects to not take certain players which then allowed Vegas to flip those assets to get star players.

#2. Salary cap management

Similar to the Tampa Bay Lightning when they won their Stanley Cup, many fans were critical because Vegas is technically over the cap but in the playoffs, the cap is not in play.

The Golden Knights were without captain Mark Stone due to a back injury and Vegas was allowed to put him on long-term injured reserve which meant it could go over the cap by $9.5 million as long as Stone wasn't playing in the regular season.

Funny enough, once the playoffs started, Stone was healthy and able to play again despite missing the regular season so Vegas could add some players at the deadline.

#3. Non-traditional hockey market

The final reason why many NHL fans dislike the Vegas Golden Knights is the same reason why they disliked the Lightning winning and Florida having success. It is due to the fact it's not a traditional hockey market.

Fans of hockey often think those markets don't care about hockey due to the fact there is no cold weather/ice/snow and many fans believe they only like the teams when they are good.

For Canadian hockey fans and American fans who experience the cold weather and live in traditional hockey markets, seeing these teams have success rubs them the wrong way.