Each NHL Conference Finalist's X-Factor: Caufield, Nelson And More
Succeeding in the NHL requires a full team effort, but specific players can make the difference between glory and disappointment.
As the NHL conference finals begin, these X-factors will be even more important than they were in the first two rounds.
The Colorado Avalanche and Vegas Golden Knights will battle in the Western Conference final, while the Carolina Hurricanes and Montreal Canadiens match up in the Eastern Conference final.
Each of these teams is halfway to its goal of winning it all, with just eight wins to go before lifting the Stanley Cup. But with a tough task at hand, the difference-makers must step into the spotlight and make an impact for their team.
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Brock Nelson, C, Colorado Avalanche
The Avalanche have seen a wide margin of playing styles from their opponents in the first two rounds of the post-season.
The Los Angeles Kings didn't give up much defensively, and the Minnesota Wild were ready to compete in a track meet with goal explosions on both sides of the ice.
But while the Golden Knights are still strong offensively, they fit somewhere in the middle of what the Avalanche have already seen in this post-season.
That said, with Vegas leading the league in goals, and right winger Mitch Marner leading the playoffs in scoring with 18 points in 12 games, Colorado will need to shut down that threat.
That's where center Brock Nelson comes in.
Nelson was named a finalist for the Selke Trophy, along with Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki and Tampa Bay Lightning center Anthony Cirelli.
With that, Nelson has been a second-line player, which would match him up with Marner, giving the Avalanche pivot a chance to neutralize what has been the Golden Knights' biggest weapon.
If Nelson can handle that, Colorado should be on a path to its second Stanley Cup final appearance in five years.
Cole Caufield, RW, Montreal Canadiens
Cole Caufield struggled to score in the early stages of this post-season. He had just one goal in his first nine games.
To his credit, the right winger has picked up his production with three goals and five points in the final five games against the Buffalo Sabres.
However, no one can shut down offense and superstars like the Hurricanes can, and the Habs may learn that firsthand in this Eastern Conference final matchup.
Though Montreal has been able to get away with Caufield underperforming in this post-season, there will be no room for that against Carolina if Martin St-Louis' team wants a chance at the title.
Of course, finding offense isn't all on the shoulders of Caufield. But with the way he's played in these playoffs, there is certainly more for the 25-year-old to give, and Montreal needs his best services more than ever against Carolina.
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Noah Hanifin, D, Vegas Golden Knights
Everyone knows about the Avalanche's nuclear attack of Nathan MacKinnon, Martin Necas, Gabriel Landeskog, Nazem Kadri, Nelson, Cale Makar and more.
The Golden Knights are aware of the task at hand. With that, they'll need a monstrous performance by their defense corps in this series.
Vegas does have a solid makeup of defensemen, including Rasmus Andersson, Brayden McNabb and Shea Theodore. But Noah Hanifin will need to set the example on defense for how to deal with Colorado's superstars.
Hanifin is second on the team in these playoffs in average ice time, at 24:14. He's faced Logan Cooley, Nick Schmaltz, Dylan Guenther, Clayton Keller, Troy Terry and Leo Carlsson quite often already.
One way or another, he will see plenty of Colorado's top dogs and will have a huge say in how many times the Avalanche can find the back of the net in this series.
If Hanifin can channel his inner Jaccob Slavin against the Avs, the Golden Knights' chances at slaying the Presidents' Trophy winners increases drastically.
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This story was originally published May 20, 2026 at 11:10 AM.