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When do NHL conference finals begin? League sets East, West scenarios

Two teams have clinched a spot in the NHL’s conference finals, and the Vegas Golden Knights could join the Colorado Avalanche and Carolina Hurricanes if they win on Thursday, March 14.

That’s enough for the NHL to put out potential starting dates for the conference finals, even though the Buffalo Sabres and Montreal Canadiens were tied 2-2 before Game 5 on Thursday night.

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Regardless of the results of that series, the Western Conference finals will start on May 20 at Denver’s Ball Arena against the Golden Knights-Anaheim Ducks winner.

If the Sabres or Canadiens wrap up their series in six games, the Eastern Conference finals will start on May 19. If the teams go to seven games, it will start on May 21. The Hurricanes will host the first two games at Lenovo Center.

Here are the scenarios for the conference finals:

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NHL awards finalists: Who’s up for 2025-26 regular season awards?

The NHL is announcing the finalists for the Hart Trophy and the other major awards. Here’s who is in the running (listed alphabetically):

Jack Adams Award (coach) finalist: Tampa Bay Lightning’s Jon Cooper

Jack Adams finalist: Pittsburgh Penguins’ Dan Muse

Jack Adams finalist: Buffalo Sabres’ Lindy Ruff

Vezina Trophy (goaltender) New York Islanders’ Ilya Sorokin

Vezina finalist: Boston Bruins’ Jeremy Swayman

Vezina finalist: Tampa Bay Lightning’s Andrei Vasilevskiy

Lady Byng Trophy (sportsmanship) finalist: Montreal Canadiens right wing Cole Caufield

Lady Byng finalist: Los Angeles Kings’ Anze Kopitar.

Lady Byng finalist: Ottawa Senators defenseman Jake Sanderson

Ted Lindsay Award (most outstanding player) finalist: San Jose Sharks center Macklin Celebrini

Ted Lindsay finalist: Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov

Ted Lindsay finalist: Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid

Masterton Trophy (perseverance) nominee: Anaheim Ducks goaltender Ville Husso

Masterton nominee: Boston Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy

Masterton nominee: Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin

Masterton nominee: Calgary Flames goaltender Devin Cooley

Masterton nominee: Carolina Hurricanes left wing Taylor Hall

Masterton nominee: Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Spencer Knight

Masterton nominee: Colorado Avalanche left wing Gabriel Landeskog

Masterton nominee: Columbus Blue Jackets center Boone Jenner

Masterton nominee: Dallas Stars left wing Jamie Benn

Masterton nominee: Detroit Red Wings right wing Dominik Shine

Masterton nominee: Edmonton Oilers goalie Connor Ingram

Masterton nominee: Florida Panthers left wing Brad Marchand

Masterton nominee: Los Angeles Kings center Anze Kopitar

Masterton nominee: Minnesota Wild goaltender Jesper Wallstedt

Masterton nominee: Montreal Canadiens defenseman Mike Matheson

Masterton nominee: Nashville Predators right wing Ozzy Wiesblatt

Masterton nominee: New Jersey Devils defenseman Brenden Dillon

Masterton nominee: New York Islanders center Kyle Palmieri

Masterton nominee: New York Rangers defenseman Matthew Robertson

Masterton nominee: Ottawa Senators goalie Linus Ullmark

Masterton nominee: Philadelphia Flyers left wing Garrett Wilson

Masterton nominee: Pittsburgh Penguins right wing Anthony Mantha

Masterton nominee: St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington

Masterton nominee: San Jose Sharks goalie Laurent Brossoit

Masterton nominee: Seattle Kraken right wing Jordan Eberle

Masterton nominee: Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Darren Raddysh

Masterton nominee: Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson

Masterton nominee: Utah Mammoth right wing Clayton Keller

Masterton nominee: Vancouver Canucks goalie Kevin Lankinen

Masterton nominee: Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Akira Schmid

Masterton nominee: Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin

Masterton nominee: Winnipeg Jets center Jonathan Toews

Western Conference final

All times p.m. ET. x-if necessary

May 20: Vegas/Anaheim at Colorado, 8, ESPN
May 22: Vegas/Anaheim at Colorado, 8, ESPN
May 24: Colorado at Vegas/Anaheim, 8, ESPN
May 26: Colorado at Vegas/Anaheim, TBD, ESPN
x-May 28: Vegas/Anaheim at Colorado, 8, ESPN
x-May 30: Colorado at Vegas/Anaheim, 8, ABC
x-June 1: Vegas/Anaheim at Colorado, 8, ESPN

Eastern Conference final

Times TBD

If Buffalo-Montreal series ends in six games

May 19: Buffalo/Montreal at Carolina, TNT, truTV
May 21: Buffalo/Montreal at Carolina, TNT, truTV
May 23: Carolina at Buffalo/Montreal, TNT, truTV
May 25: Carolina at Buffalo/Montreal, TNT, truTV
x-May 27: Buffalo/Montreal at Carolina, TNT, truTV
x-May 29: Carolina at Buffalo/Montreal, TNT, truTV
x-May 31: Buffalo/Montreal at Carolina, TNT, truTV

If Buffalo-Montreal series ends in seven games

May 21: Buffalo/Montreal at Carolina, TNT, truTV
May 23: Buffalo/Montreal at Carolina, TNT, truTV
May 25: Carolina at Buffalo/Montreal, TNT, truTV
May 27: Carolina at Buffalo/Montreal, TNT, truTV
x-May 29: Buffalo/Montreal at Carolina, TNT, truTV
x-May 31: Carolina at Buffalo/Montreal, TNT, truTV
x-June 2: Buffalo/Montreal at Carolina, TNT, truTV

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: When do NHL conference finals start? Eastern, Western schedule, dates

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