Keys to the Cup: Golden Knights must do these 3 things to lift Stanley

All season long, the Vegas Golden Knights have been earning a reputation as the hardest-working group in the NHL, winning contest after contest with their relentless speed and commitment to playing a responsible 200-foot game.

After smashing all expectations and rewriting the history books, the expansion club finds itself staring down the Washington Capitals for the 2018 Stanley Cup title.

However, getting past a Capitals group led by a ravenous Alex Ovechkin and reinvigorated Braden Holtby won't be an easy task. If the Knights are to complete the storybook season and hoist Lord Stanley, these three factors will be paramount:

Defend home ice

Flu or not, beating the Knights in Sin City isn't easy. Vegas owned one of the best home records in the league during the regular season, winning 29 games at T-Mobile Arena.

Winning on home ice against Washington will be even more crucial, because the Capitals have been absolute warriors on the road this postseason, posting an impressive 8-2 record, conceding just 20 goals in 10 away games, and clinching all three road series.

The @Capitals improved to 8-2 as visitors in the 2018 #StanleyCup Playoffs and moved within two road wins of matching the NHL record for most in a postseason. #NHLStats #WSHvsTBL #Game7 pic.twitter.com/TR5UHn89hF

- NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) May 24, 2018

The raucous home crowd off which Vegas has been feeding all year has been an underrated factor in the team's success, and playing inside a building that rowdy on a stage this big is bound to have implications on the series' outcome.

If the Knights can overcome Washington's road superiority to hold serve at home, this series might be a lot shorter than people expect.

Rattle Holtby's cage early

Look, you don't need to be rocking rings like Scotty Bowman to know a hot goalie can steal any series, so saying the Knights need to get to Holtby is a bit obvious.

But, since being benched in favor of backup netminder Philipp Grubauer in the first two games of the playoffs, Holtby has been living up to his "Holtbeast" reputation, putting up a 12-6 record to go along with a sparkling .924 save percentage and two shutouts. Getting him out of his rhythm will be paramount for the Knights.

(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)

A potentially clutch factor for Vegas would be getting the first goal, as Washington has opened the scoring in 10 of their 12 wins this postseason.

Whichever way you slice it, Holtby is starting to get locked in, as proven by his shutting out of one of the most potent offensive groups in the Tampa Bay Lightning over the last two games, so getting him off his game early will be key for the Knights' success.

Shut down Capitals' power play

Washington's ability to convert on power-play chances has been pivotal to reaching its second Cup final in franchise history. The Caps own the second-deadliest power play of the entire postseason while scoring on the man advantage at an impressive 28.8-percent clip. Bucking that trend will be crucial for the Knights.

Furthermore, Washington's 17 PP goals account for over 25 percent of its total tally, so the Knights have their work cut out.

Washington's top unit of John Carlson, T.J. Oshie, Evegny Kuznetsov, Nicklas Backstrom, and Ovechkin are a handful for the most astute group of penalty killers. But, luckily for Vegas, head coach Gerard Gallant deploys one of the stingiest PK units in the league.

And, while the Capitals can score on special teams, the Knights are equally up to the task of keeping pucks out of their net on the PK, killing off 82.5 percent of penalties incurred in these playoffs.

Simply put, both teams can bring it on special teams, so don't be surprised if this series is decided on the man advantage.

Copyright (C) 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.