Two Russian Players Reach the Stanley Cup Final in the 2022/23 Season
Two Russian hockey players are set to participate in the final series of the Stanley Cup for the 2022/23 season. They are Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky and Vegas Golden Knights forward Ivan Barbashev.
Florida earned a spot in the final by defeating the Carolina Hurricanes 4-0, while Vegas advanced with a 4-2 victory over the Dallas Stars in the Western Conference Finals, securing their place as the Western Conference champions. Barbashev previously won the Stanley Cup with the St. Louis Blues, and Bobrovsky has yet to win the NHL championship title in his career.
Barbashev, born on February 9, 1995, in Moscow, has been with the Vegas Golden Knights since 2017 after moving from the St. Louis Blues. He contributed to Blues’ 2019 Cup run and later joined Vegas, where he continued to build his reputation as a versatile winger capable of playing in a variety of offensive roles.
Bobrovsky, who turned 34, has built a long NHL résumé. His career includes stints with the Philadelphia Flyers and the Columbus Blue Jackets before joining Florida in 2019 on a seven year contract. His experience and dependable goaltending have been key components of the Panthers over the years, and 2022/23 marks another chapter in his pursuit of his first league championship.
The opening game of the final series is scheduled for June 4 and will begin at 03:00 Moscow time. The match will be held at the Vegas Golden Knights’ home arena in Paradise, Nevada, a venue that has hosted several pivotal playoff moments for the franchise.
In other league news, there were reports during the 2022/23 playoffs about injuries affecting Russian players in the league. Specifically, Ilya Samsonov, the Russian goaltender for the Toronto Maple Leafs, was noted in several updates as dealing with a neck-related issue during the playoffs. These updates circulated as part of the broader coverage of injuries impacting teams in the late stages of the season.
Overall, the presence of Bobrovsky and Barbashev in the final emphasizes the continued impact of Russian talent in the NHL and adds a layer of narrative for fans watching a high-stakes showdown between two storied franchises. Their performances in the closing rounds of the season have highlighted the depth and experience that both teams bring to the final series, making the outcome highly anticipated across North American hockey communities.