The Vegas Golden Knights could clinch their first Stanely Cup tonight as they face the Florida Panthers. It is time to continue our NHL odds series with a Game Five Panthers-Golden Knights prediction, pick, and how-to watch.

For the Panthers, they will attempt to become just the second team to come back from down 3-1 in the Stanley Cup final to lift the cup. The last time a team did it in the finals was in 1942 when the Toronto Maple Leafs were down 3-0 in the series, and beat the Detroit Red Wins. Still, they have already done it once in this playoffs, coming back from down 3-1 to the Boston Bruins in the first round. Eric Staal knows how hard it is to close out in game five as well. Staal, now a member of the Panthers, was part of the 2006 Hurricanes team that almost blew a 3-1 lead in the finals.

Vegas is also no stranger to the pressure of this game. In 2019 they were on the wrong end of a comeback from down 3-1. San Jose came back from down 3-1 to win the first-round series with the Golden Knights that year. In 2020 it almost happened again, as Vancouver came back from down 3-1 to force a game seven. Vegas would win that series but in a much more stressful fashion. Just as it was in 2021 when Minnesota came back to force a game seven as well. Vegas has been in the playoffs three times in franchise history before this year, and each season they have had a 3-1 series lead turn into a game seven.

Here are the Panthers-Golden Knights NHL odds, courtesy of FanDuel

Stanley Cup Final Odds: Panthers-Golden Knights Odds

Florida Panthers: +1.5 (-182)

Las Vegas Golden Knights: -1.5 (+150)

Over: 5.5 (-124)

Under: 5.5 (+102)

How To Watch Panthers vs. Golden Knights Stanley Cup Final

TV: TNT

Stream: TNT App

Time: 8:00 PM ET/ 5:00 PM PT

*Watch NHL games LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*

Why The Panthers Could Cover The Spread

The major question going into the game will be the health of Matthew Tkachuk. After being limited in game four, he will be vital to the Panthers winning game five. Tkachuk has 24 points in the playoffs, with 11 goals and 13 assists. In this series, he has two goals and an assist but has yet to tally a power play point. Nine of his 24 points so far in the playoffs have been on the power play, and the power play is something that needs to improve if Florida is going to get the win tonight. Florida has yet to score on the power play in this series. In the playoffs, when Florida scores on the power play they are 8-2. When they fail to score on the power play they are just 5-5.

While Tkachuk is a major part of the power play, so is Sam Reinhart. Reinhart has seven goals and four assists in the playoffs. Three of the goals and two of the assists have come on the power play. So far in this series, Reinhart does not have a single point. He needs to get on the board tonight to help Florida prolong this series. As does Carter Verhaeghe. Verhaeghe was a 40-goal scorer in the regular season and in the playoffs he has seven goals and ten assists. In this series, he has just one goal and one assist. Both of those games in the game three wins for Florida.

Finally, Sergei Bobrovsky needs to step up his play. In the series three of his four games have seen a save percentage below .905. The Panthers lost all three of them. In the playoffs before this series, Bobrovskly was only below the .905 marker three times. One was a short relief appearance in game three against Boston in which the Panthers lost. The other two were both against Boston as well, and he went 1-1. If he can get a few more saves, the Panthers will survive to play another day.

Why The Golden Knights Could Cover The Spread

For Vegas, it all starts with Aidn Hill, who has been awesome. In three of the four games in this series, he has a save percentage of .935 or higher. In those three games, he has allowed just two goals while getting 15 goals of support. The result was three wins for Vegas. In the one game that Hill was not at his best, he let in a third goal and had a .870 save percentage. That resulted in their only loss of the series. If he plays as he has in the other three games, turning away multiple high-risk scoring area chances of Florida, Vegas will be walking away tonight with the Cup.

Vegas will also need one more big game from Jonathan Marchessault. Marchessault has four goals and three assists so far in this series, including three points on the power play. The power play has been big for Vegas so far in the series. They have scored six power-play goals on 18 chances so far in the series. Considering that Florida is averaging giving up over four power-play chances a game, that means in all likelihood Vegas will get a goal on the power play tonight.

Jack Eichel will also be hoping to add to his point total in this game. He has five points in the series, all assists. It gives him 17 asists and six goals in in the playoffs so far. He was held out of the scoring column in the last game but only played 15:51 of ice time, the lowest he has played since the final game of the series with Dallas.

Final Panthers-Golden Knights Prediction & Pick

This game will come down to the two goaltenders. Florida has played well enough to win more than one game, but Hill has been amazing. If Hill continues that play, it will be hard for Florida to get the win. Still, Vegas does not have a great history of closing out teams. All time in games in which they could win the series, Vegas is just 10-10. They even struggled in the Dallas series, losing games four and five before closing it out in game six. This should be a close game though. With that, take the extra goals and back to Florida.

Final Panthers-Golden Knights Prediction & Pick: Florida +1.5 (-182)