The Washington Capitals advanced to the Stanley Cup Final and will play the Vegas Golden Knights.

The Capitals defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-0 in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final on Wednesday.

"I'm just happy for my boys, for the organization, for the fans, finally," Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin told NBCSN. "I can't wait to come back home and play at home in the Stanley Cup Final. It's going to be nuts over there."

[RELATED: Complete Golden Knights vs. Capitals series coverage | Stanley Cup Final schedule]

The Golden Knights defeated the Winnipeg Jets in five games to win the Western Conference Final. That best-of-7 series ended Sunday.

"Right now, our team, everybody plays their best," Vegas forward Jonathan Marchessault said. "... Everybody is on point. Everybody has a taste of it too. We want more. How could we be satisfied with what we did right now?"

Video: WSH@TBL, Gm7: Holtby, Ovechkin on going to Cup Final

Vegas, which had four points more than Washington this regular season (109-105), has home-ice advantage and will host Game 1 at T-Mobile Arena on Monday (8 p.m. ET; NBC, CBC, SN, TVAS).

"It's going to be a wild ride in Vegas," Washington forward Tom Wilson said. "That's going to be a heck of a show and we're looking forward to a pretty historic final here."

It's the second time the Capitals have advanced to the Stanley Cup Final. They were swept by the Detroit Red Wings in 1998.

The Capitals lost the two games to the Golden Knights this season, 3-0 on the road Dec. 23 and 4-3 at home Feb. 4. Matt Niskanen, Nicklas Backstrom and Chandler Stephenson scored for Washington, and Braden Holtby (3.00 GAA, .893 save percentage) and Philipp Grubauer (4.10 GAA, .871 save percentage) each started one game.

Reilly Smith and Alex Tuch each had two goals and an assist, and Marchessault had three assists for the Golden Knights. Marc-Andre Fleury had a .939 save percentage and one shutout winning the two games.

"Obviously their goalie's playing great and they work together," Washington defenseman John Carlson said of Vegas. "They work together really well and kind of attack you with five guys. Kind of like the last three teams we faced. It's going to be a tall task, but I have confidence and faith in this group and what we're capable of."

The Golden Knights are the third team to advance to the Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural NHL season, joining the Toronto Arenas (1918) and St. Louis Blues (1968). Vegas is the sixth team to reach the Cup Final in its first postseason appearance, joining the Arenas, Blues, Montreal Maroons (1926), Boston Bruins (1927) and Florida Panthers (1996).

Vegas defeated the Los Angeles Kings in four games and the San Jose Sharks in six games before eliminating Winnipeg.

Video: How Vegas achieved the impossible in their first year

Marchessault leads the Golden Knights with 18 points (eight goals, 10 assists) in 15 playoff games. Linemates Smith (16 points; four goals, 12 assists) and William Karlsson (13 points; six goals, seven assists) are second and third. Fleury is 12-3 with a 1.68 goals-against average and .947 save percentage, which is the best in NHL history for a goalie with at least 12 games played in a single postseason.

"I think we deserve it," Karlsson said. "We beat three great teams to get to this spot. No one believed in us. Now they're saying it was unfair and things like that. I think we deserve to be here, and all the fans, the city, deserve to be here."

Washington defeated the Columbus Blue Jackets and Pittsburgh Penguins each in six games.

"Every series is tough," Ovechkin said. "We're just playing our game, stick to the system, and we deserve to win."

Capitals forward Evgeny Kuznetsov leads the playoffs with 24 points (11 goals, 13 assists) and Ovechkin is second (22 points; 12 goals, 10 assists). Holtby is 12-6 with a 2.04 GAA and .924 save percentage since taking over from Philipp Grubauer in Game 2 of the first round.

"They're going to be a tough test," Washington forward T.J. Oshie said. "I think we're going to be a tough test as well. I personally can't wait to get there and play head to head."

NHL.com staff writer Tracey Myers contributed to this report.</s>History will be made in the 2018 Stanley Cup Finals, no matter which team wins the title. The Washington Capitals have never won a championship in their 44-year existence, and the Vegas Golden Knights are still in their expansion season.

Vegas is a slight betting favorite after having a more successful regular season, as well as an easier time in the conference finals. The Golden Knights had 109 points, finishing four points ahead of the Capitals in the overall NHL standings. They needed just five games to get past the Winnipeg Jets last round, watching from home as Washington survived a seven-game series with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

No one expected the expansion franchise to win the Western Conference, and they might be in the midst of the most improbable title run in the history of American team sports. The Golden Knights had 500-1 odds to win the championship before the season began, though they quickly proved to be real contenders with eight victories in their first nine games.

The Golden Knights will be well-rested when they finally take the ice for Game 1. They punched their ticket to the Stanley Cup Finals on Sunday, May 20, giving them eight days off in between games. The Capitals will have five days of rest after clinching Thursday night.

Fatigue shouldn’t be a factor in the Stanley Cup Finals because of the way the schedule is structured. Not only are there no back-to-backs, but the teams will have 72 hours of rest four times if the series goes seven games.

Every contest will start at 8 p.m. EDT on either NBC or NBC Sports Network. Only one Stanley Cup Final in the last decade has gone fewer than six games.</s>The NHL season is down to two teams, and fans are bracing themselves for an historic Stanley Cup finals. The most remarkable story in American sports history, the expansion Las Vegas Golden Knights, are in the Stanley Cup finals in their inaugural season. The action starts May 28, when the Knights host the Washington Capitals in Las Vegas.

Las Vegas will be favored in their first-ever Stanley Cup final appearance, opening as a -150 favorite according to Jeff Sherman. The Capitals are the underdog at +135.

Stanley Cup odds are also available for the series. Once again, in their first appearance, the Las Vegas Golden Knights are favored to hoist the Stanley Cup. They are a -160 favorite according to Sherman, with the Capitals valued at +140.

Heading into Wednesday night’s Game 7 between the Capitals and Lightning, you could still place futures wagers on the winner of the Stanley Cup. As the only team that secured their place in the final, Vegas had the best Stanley Cup odds at -101, according to OddsShark. Tampa Bay had the next-best odds at +228, while the Caps trailed at +330.

Why the discrepancy between the teams? The biggest swing factor is the potential home-ice advantage. Las Vegas is 6-1 during the postseason at T-Mobile Arena, and oddsmakers think it would be tougher for Washington should they face a Game 7 in Vegas. Alternatively, as the top seed and guaranteed a Game 7 at home, Tampa has slightly better Stanley Cup odds should they advance.

I cannot and will not pick against the greatest story in American sports history. Look at this absolutely preposterous timeline:

Vegas is great at home, and they’ve closed three playoff series on the road. They have a reliable scorer in William Karlsson, and arguably the hottest goaltender in the postseason.

And he is one heck of a goaltender. Marc-Andre Fleury is going for a third straight Stanley Cup finals win, and is looking to continue his career of playing spoiler to NHL superstar Alex Ovechkin. He enters the final series with four straight games of 30-plus saves.

The former first overall pick in Pittsburgh has closed the door on the Capitals in the playoffs on two separate occasions, including two outstanding game seven performances. After winning back-to-back cups with the Penguins, Fleury fell into the lap of Las Vegas during the expansion draft when Pittsburgh decided to protect the younger Matt Murray.

The Capitals have the most postseason experience of any team in the playoffs, playing postseason hockey in 11 of the past 12 seasons. Theoretically, they shouldn’t be fazed by the lights of Vegas. Washington is 7-2 away from home in the postseason, including winning three road games over the Penguins. And then, of course, a convincing 4-0 victory in Tampa to secure their first Stanley Cup final appearance since the 1997-98 season.

The Capitals will try to win the series by playing physical hockey and winning on special teams. They’ve had decent success on the power play in the postseason, but Vegas has been excellent at killing penalties throughout the postseason. Evgeny Kuznetsov has been the best offensive player in the NHL during the playoffs, and he’ll need to stay hot for the Caps to swing momentum in their favor.

The bottom line is this: Las Vegas is not supposed to be here. Washington should have been here by now. The NHL Playoffs will forever and always belong to the team with the hottest goaltender. If Fleury can play like he did over the final four games against Winnipeg, the Golden Knights will celebrate their inaugural season with a Las Vegas-style parade.</s>One of hockey’s biggest stars is headed to his first Stanley Cup Final in his 13th season in the league to play a team that has only been around for one.

TAMPA, Fla. — One of hockey’s biggest stars is headed to his first Stanley Cup Final in his 13th season in the league to play a team that has only been around for one.

Alexander Ovechkin scored a goal just 62 seconds into Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final and goalie Braden Holtby made it hold up for a 4-0 win over the Lightning at Amalie Arena on Wednesday night that sent the Capitals on to the Finals.

They will play Game 1 against the Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena on Monday.

Andre Burakovsky added his first two goals of the playoffs in the second period and Nicklas Backstrom added an empty netter to seal the Capitals second berth in the Stanley Cup Finals.

Holtby stopped all 29 shots he saw for his second consecutive shutout.

Washington, which has never won a Stanley Cup in 28 playoff appearances, lost to the Detroit Red Wings in the 1998 Finals.

The Capitals lost both games to the Golden Knights during the regular season.

Vegas shut out Washington 3-0 at T-Mobile Arena in December before taking a 4-3 decision at Capital One Arena in February.

Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-277-8028. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on Twitter.</s>The Golden Knights are minus 160 favorites at the Westgate sports book to defeat the Washington Capitals (plus 140) in the Stanley Cup Final.

Washington Capitals goaltender Philipp Grubauer (31), from Germany, knocks the puck away from Vegas Golden Knights right wing Reilly Smith (19) in the first period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, Feb. 4, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Vegas Golden Knights right wing Alex Tuch, left, center, and others celebrate after an NHL hockey game against the Washington Capitals, Sunday, Feb. 4, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Vegas Golden Knights right wing Reilly Smith, left, and center Jonathan Marchessault celebrate Smith's goal with Washington Capitals left wing Jakub Vrana (13), from the Czech Republic, nearby in the third period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, Feb. 4, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Vegas Golden Knights center Ryan Carpenter (40) lunges to shoot the puck as Washington Capitals goaltender Philipp Grubauer (31), from Germany, defends in the first period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, Feb. 4, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Vegas Golden Knights right wing Alex Tuch (89) skates with the puck as Washington Capitals defenseman Christian Djoos (29), from Sweden, and goaltender Philipp Grubauer (31), watch during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, Feb. 4, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Washington Capitals center Evgeny Kuznetsov (92), from Russia, attempts a shot as Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Brayden McNabb (3) defends in the second period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, Feb. 4, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Washington Capitals center Evgeny Kuznetsov (92), from Russia, looks to pass as Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Nate Schmidt (88) defends in the second period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, Feb. 4, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Vegas Golden Knights center Ryan Carpenter (40) celebrates his goal with right wing Alex Tuch (89) nearby in the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Washington Capitals, Sunday, Feb. 4, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Washington Capitals left wing Jakub Vrana (13), from the Czech Republic, skates with the puck as Vegas Golden Knights left wing David Perron (57) reaches for it in the first period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, Feb. 4, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Washington Capitals defenseman Matt Niskanen, right, celebrates his goal with defenseman Dmitry Orlov (9), from Russia, in the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Vegas Golden Knights, Sunday, Feb. 4, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Washington Capitals center Chandler Stephenson (18) and right wing Devante Smith-Pelly (25) celebrate a goal past Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury (29) in the first period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, Feb. 4, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The Golden Knights are minus 160 favorites at the Westgate sports book to defeat the Washington Capitals (plus 140) in the Stanley Cup Final.

The Knights are minus 150 over the Capitals (plus 135) in Game 1 of the best-of-seven series, which begins Monday at T-Mobile Arena. The total is 5½.

Vegas went 2-0 against Washington in the regular season.

The Capitals defeated the host Tampa Bay Lightning 4-0 on Wednesday in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final.</s>TAMPA — The Washington Capitals have been delivered from a 20-year Stanley Cup Final drought by a player who was only three when it began.

Andre Burakovsky, 23, born in Austria and raised in Sweden, scored his first two goals of the playoffs to give the Capitals a 4-0 Game 7 win against the Tampa Bay Lightning. It's the Capitals' first (and second overall) trip to the Stanley Cup Final since 1998 when they were swept by the Detroit Red Wings.

The Capitals will now face the Vegas Golden Knights in the best-of-seven final starting Monday in Las Vegas.

Washington had long been known for postseason collapses. The Capitals were 4-11 in Game 7s before Wednesday’s game. The franchise has never won a Stanley Cup in its 44-year history. Contrast that to the Golden Knights who have reached the final in their first NHL season.

More: Capitals' Tom Wilson goes berserk, then punches off Lightning player's helmet in Game 7 fight

More: Capitals player Devante Smith-Pelly blocks Lightning shot in Game 7 with his neck, returns

The Capitals eliminated the Lightning in convincing fashion, rallying from a 3-2 series deficit by shutting out Tampa Bay in the final two games.

What makes the Caps’ final berth more fascinating is that it comes during a season in which the Capitals were expected to take a half-step back. They finished as the Eastern Conference's third-best team (105 points) during the regular season, while the Lightning were the East's best (113 points).

Nobody will be happier than captain Alex Ovechkin, 33, who has always been blamed for the Capitals’ lack of playoff success during his career in the nation’s capital. This is the first time Ovechkin has ever been beyond the second round of the playoffs.

He has led the Capitals’ charge throughout the playoffs, including Wednesday night when he scored on a 50-foot shot 1:02 into the game to give Washington a 1-0 lead.

Ovechkin has been beastly throughout the postseason. He boasts 12 goals and 10 assists for 22 points in the playoffs, and he is among the leading hitters.

While this Capitals team doesn’t seem to be as talented as Washington teams of the past, it has demonstrated a team-wide commitment to digging deep to find ways to win.

The Game 7 win was another example. Burakovsky started the playoffs on the injury list, and had no points in seven games before becoming the offensive hero in Game 7.

Goalie Braden Holtby was benched at the start of the playoffs, but earned his job back, and now has won 12 playoff games. This was his second consecutive shutout, and he did allow a goal for 157:13.

Salary cap concerns forced general manager Brian MacLellan to shake up his roster last summer, and that included revamping his bottom two lines. Newcomers such as Devante Smith-Pelly and Chandler Stephenson have all made significant contributions. They have helped bring new energy.

For whatever reason, the mix of players has worked far better than it has in the past.</s>For the first time in two decades, the Washington Capitals are heading to the Stanley Cup Final, where they will face this year's Cinderella team, the expansion Vegas Golden Knights.

The Caps punched their ticket by defeating the Tampa Bay Lighting 4-0 on Wednesday night in the seventh game of their Eastern Conference Final series. Vegas had previously eliminated the Winnipeg Jets in the Western final.

Washington let Tampa Bay know early that it meant business: Alex Ovechkin scored the opening goal during the second minute of play. Andre Burakovsky added two more in the second period to help lead the Caps' victory.

"The first goal was very important," said Ovechkin, who will be playing in his first Final. "After that you could see we have all the momentum on our side. Holts [Washington goalkeeper Braden Holtby] was unstoppable today. He was special. Everybody was all in. Everybody was sacrificing their bodies. I think we all deserve the win."

It’s the first time Washington has advanced to the Stanley Cup Final since 1998, when the Caps were swept by Detroit.

Before Wednesday night’s victory, Ovechkin had never made it past the second round during his 13-year career.

"I think Ovie has been on a mission," Capitals coach Barry Trotz said. "They wanted this game, no question."

Holtby made his presence felt during the winner-take-all showdown, stopping 29 shots and handing the Lightning, who led the NHL in goals during the regular season, their second straight shutout.

The Lightning did not score a goal in the last 159 minutes, 27 seconds of the series – a stretch of nearly eight periods.

Washington beat Tampa Bay three times on the road to secure their spot in the Final against the Golden Knights, improving to 8-2 away from home this postseason.

After Ovechkin’s early score, Burakovsky – who played two games in the first round against Columbus before sitting out 10 straight with an upper-body injury – added a goal on a breakaway against Andrei Vasilevskiy at 8:59 of the second period to become the 17th player to score a goal for Washington in the playoffs this year -- four shy of the NHL record.

The winger scored again on another breakaway to give the Capitals a 3-0 edge heading into the final period, with Nicklas Backstrom adding a goal on an empty-netter to complete the rout.

Ovechkin described Wednesday’s faceoff as probably the "biggest game in my life."

"What a game. What an experience. We had a lot of guys pitching in," winger T.J. Oshie said. "The biggest guy of all had to be Holts. He played fantastic, back to back shutouts."

Tampa Bay lost its first two games in the series, but fought back to win three straight and take a 3-2 lead. But, the Capitals proved to be too much in Game 6, shutting out the Lightning 3-0 and pushing the series to a winner-take-all matchup on Wednesday -- which yielded a similar result as Washington kept its foot on the gas.

The Lightning had several missed opportunities to score in Game 7, as a couple shots rebounded off the post and Yanni Gourde failed to get his stick on a loose puck in front on an empty net. The team’s last goal came 33 seconds into the second period of Game 5, which the Lightning went on to win 3-2.

"We're here to win as team, no matter who gets the credit," said Holtby, the fifth goalie to deliver a Game 7 shutout to clinch a spot in the Stanley Cup Final.

"I felt we could have won every game," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. "We ran into a tough Washington team that was probably feeling the same thing, and once you get this far you've probably done some magical things on the way."

It was the 33rd time a Game 7 matchup determined who advanced to the Stanley Cup Final, with the Home team 21-12 in those situations.

Tampa Bay also played Game 7 in the Eastern Conference final in 2015, when they blanked the New York Rangers, and again two years ago, when they lost 2-1 to Pittsburgh.

Both of those deciding games were on the road. The Lightning had never lost a Game 7 at home before Wednesday night.

"It's going to take a few days to digest this. It's tough to sit here right now and think of positive things and how it was a pretty great season," Lightning captain Steven Stamkos said. "It doesn't seem that way when you have this group — and we've been to this position before — and you can't find a way to give yourself a chance a win. We thought we had that group. It's just an empty feeling right now."

Now, the Capitals set their sights on the Golden Knights, who hope to cumulate their prolific inaugural season run by hoisting the Stanley Cup trophy.

"I feel very happy, but we're not finished yet," Ovechkin said. "We've been waiting for this moment a long time."

An expansion team hasn’t made it to the Final since 1968, when the St. Louis Blues beat out five other NHL newcomers to win the West Division, as it was then called.

The Knights went 2-0 against the Capitals in the regular season, winning 3-0 at home on Dec. 23 and 4-3 at Washington on Feb. 4.

Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final will be played in Las Vegas on Monday night.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.</s>TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Alex Ovechkin is thrilled, though hardly satisfied.

The Washington Capitals star is headed to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time in his 13-year career, eager to put more distance between the Eastern Conference champions and a lingering perception of Ovechkin and the Caps as playoff underachievers.

“Finally we get what we want, be in the Stanley Cup Final,” the 32-year-old Russian star said. “There’s still a lot of hockey to play.”

Ovechkin scored just over a minute into Washington’s 4-0 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference final Wednesday night.

Braden Holtby stopped 29 shots to notch his second straight shutout. Andre Burakovsky scored two goals, and Nicklas Backstrom added an empty-netter to help the Capitals close it out.

Now, they’ve got to do it again against the expansion Vegas Golden Knights, who are Western Conference champions in their inaugural season.

“I feel very happy, but we’re not finished yet,” Ovechkin said. “We’ve been waiting for this moment a long time.”

The Golden Knights breezed through the Western Conference, scoring 43 goals and allowing 27 while going 12-3 to eliminate the Los Angeles Kings, San Jose Sharks and Winnipeg Jets during an improbable run to the Stanley Cup Final.

Vegas went 2-0 against the Capitals in the regular season, winning 3-0 at home on Dec. 23 and 4-3 at Washington on Feb. 4.

“It’s a great story. They’re a good hockey team, they have a lot of good players, players from other teams — I know a lot of people say we didn’t want those players, but we all did,” Capitals coach Barry Trotz said.

“The rules were the rules. They did a great job, they’ve been galvanized as a group. There’s nothing tighter than that first-year group because there’s no pre-conceived notion. Leadership’s not in place, nobody knows where to live, all those things are galvanizing.”

The Golden Knights’ top scorer during the playoffs has been former Lightning forward Jonathan Marchessault with 18 points (eight goals, 10 assists). Alex Tuch is second among league rookies with nine points (six goals, three assists).

Goalie Marc-Andre Fleury, who’s in the Stanley Cup Final for the third straight season and fifth time overall, has been a huge part of the team’s success, too, with a 1.68 goals-against-average and .947 save percentage.

Fleury and teammate James Neal return to the Cup Final after facing each other in the championship round last year — Fleury with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Neal with the Nashville Predators.

“They’re deep. They’re probably the most veteran team still playing in the playoffs. But they’ve done a fabulous job,” Trotz said. “They’re a fabulous story. … It’s a great story, not only for our game, but for everybody.”

To reach the Cup Final for the first time since 1998, the Caps beat Tampa Bay three times on the road to run their record to 8-2 away from home this postseason.

The Lightning, the NHL’s highest-scoring team during the regular season, didn’t have a goal over the final 159 minutes, 27 seconds of the series.

Ryan Callahan had Tampa Bay’s last goal at 33 seconds of the second period in Game 5.

“It’s fun. I’m more happy for that group than I am personally,” Trotz said. “They did it together. Everybody has been in all year. We kept growing on and off the ice.”

And shoving aside a decade of playoff frustration.

“The playoffs are fun,” Trotz added. “They got to the next level and realized they’re not going to be defined by anything they’ve done or not done in the past.”

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) holds the Prince of Wales trophy after the Capitals defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-0 during Game 7 of the NHL Eastern Conference finals hockey playoff series Wednesday, May 23, 2018, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara) Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) holds the Prince of Wales trophy after the Capitals defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-0 during Game 7 of the NHL Eastern Conference finals hockey playoff series Wednesday, May 23, 2018, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara) Washington Capitals celebrate after defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-0 in Game 7 of the NHL Eastern Conference finals hockey playoff series Wednesday, May 23, 2018, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Jason Behnken) Washington Capitals celebrate after defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-0 in Game 7 of the NHL Eastern Conference finals hockey playoff series Wednesday, May 23, 2018, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Jason Behnken) Washington Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby, left, and defenseman Michal Kempny (6) celebrate after the Capitals defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-0 in Game 7 of the NHL Eastern Conference finals hockey playoff series Wednesday, May 23, 2018, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Jason Behnken) Washington Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby, left, and defenseman Michal Kempny (6) celebrate after the Capitals defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-0 in Game 7 of the NHL Eastern Conference finals hockey playoff series Wednesday, May 23, 2018, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Jason Behnken)</s>The Stanley Cup Final will start Monday, but the who and the where are still undecided.

The expansion Golden Knights are in as the Western Conference representative, but the Eastern Conference winner won’t be settled until 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday when the Capitals and Lightning play Game 7 in Tampa.

If the Lightning win, the Stanley Cup Final will start in Tampa. If the Capitals win, the Final begins in Las Vegas.

The Lightning last played in the Stanley Cup Final in 2015 when they lost to the Blackhawks, while the Capitals' only appearance came when they lost to the Red Wings in 1998.

Here is a preview of Game 7:

Why the Washington Capitals can win

1. The mix of players finally seems right. The Capitals have had more talented teams in recent playoff runs, but they have never shown this level of commitment.

2. The Capitals have shown more intensity. Tom Wilson, Devante Smith-Pelly and Alex Ovechkin rank among the top four hitters in the playoffs. Brooks Orpik is sixth and T.J. Oshie isn’t far off their pace. The number isn’t as important as much as the energy and confidence those hits create. The Capitals fed off the physicality in winning Game 6.

3. Evgeny Kuznetsov has been dominant in this series. In the six games, he has four goals, five assists and 29 shots on goal. He also has 14 points during his current nine-game point scoring streak.

Why the Tampa Bay Lightning can win

1. They know how to handle the Capitals. They just beat them three times in a row in Games 3 through 5.

2. Goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy has been a force in net, stopping 131 of the 139 shots (.942 save percentage) he has faced over the past four games.

3. We haven’t seen the best from this team. Tampa Bay has not looked sharp for much of this series. The Lightning, the East's best team in the regular season. have another level, and Game 7 should bring it out of them.</s>TAMPA, Fla. – None of Washington, D.C.’s four major sports teams have won a championship since 1992 (Redskins – Super Bowl XXVI). The Washington Capitals, D.C.’s hockey team, will have a chance to put the freeze on that drought.

Wednesday, the Capitals defeat the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-0 in a winner-take-all game seven of the NHL’s Eastern Conference Final. With the victory, the Caps advance to their first Stanley Cup Final since 1998. Washington has never won a Stanley Cup Final game, much less a title.

Alex Ovechkin opened the scoring just 1:02 into the game. 8:59 into the second period, Andre Burakovsky scored his first of two goals to put the Caps ahead 2-0. His second goal of the night came with less than four minutes to play in the second period and gave Washington a 3-0 advantage.

Putting the icing on the cake, Nicklas Backstrom added a goal in the final four minutes of the third period. Braden Holtby delivered his second straight shutout in goal for the Caps.

The Capitals will face the Vegas Golden Knights, an expansion team, in the best of seven Stanley Cup Final. That series begins 8:00 p.m. Monday in Las Vegas.
The Washington Capitals will play the Vegas Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup Finals after a game 7 victory. It is the first Stanley Cup Finals appearance for the Capitals since 1998.