The Golden Knights have become the gold standard for expansion franchises.
In their inaugural 2017-18 NHL campaign, the Golden Knights made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Final and they turned out to be far from a one-year wonder. In the five seasons that followed, they made the playoffs four times, the Western Conference Final twice and the Cup Final for a second time.
On Tuesday night, the Golden Knights capped that remarkable six-year stretch with their first Stanley Cup championship by crushing the Florida Panthers 9-3 in Game 5 at Las Vegas' T-Mobile Arena.
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The Buffalo Sabres and Vancouver Canucks are still trying to win their first title after 50-plus seasons. The Arizona Coyotes' bid for a first championship is more than 40 years old. Seven other NHL franchises, including the Panthers, have gone at least two decades without winning their first Cup. But it took the expansion Golden Knights just six seasons to hoist Lord Stanley for the first time.
So where does Vegas rank among the fastest expansion teams to ever win the Stanley Cup?
Who's the fastest NHL expansion team to win the Stanley Cup?
NHL
The Golden Knights did indeed make history with their championship triumph, becoming the fastest expansion franchise to win the Stanley Cup. They're the seventh NHL franchise to capture their first title in six or fewer seasons, according to ESPN Stats & Information.
Vegas broke the Philadelphia Flyers' record championship pace among expansion teams by one year. The Flyers won the 1974 Cup in their seventh NHL season. The New York Islanders are the third-fastest champions among expansion teams, having captured the 1980 title in their eighth season.
The Golden Knights are also the fastest expansion team across the NHL, NBA, NFL and MLB to win a championship since 2001, when the Arizona Diamondbacks secured a World Series title in their fourth season.
After reaching the second round of the playoffs this year, the expansion Seattle Kraken now have three seasons to top the Golden Knights' record pace.
