Fuelled by Tragedy: Keegan Kolesar, Kelly McCrimmon Capture First Stanley Cup

Vegas Golden Knights' forward Keegan Kolesar and general manager Kelly McCrimmon share an emotional bond now sealed with a Stanley Cup championship.

The Golden Knights are Stanley Cup champions, and the final game - or series for that matter - wasn't even close. 

Vegas pummelled the Florida Panthers by way of a 9-3 final on Tuesday night in front of its home crowd at T-Mobile Arena in Nevada. 

The stars came out to play, as captain Mark Stone scored a hat trick and Jonathan Marchessault was awarded the Conn Smythe trophy as playoff MVP. 

For Brandon-born and Winnipeg-raised forward Keegan Kolesar, the moment of victory couldn't have been any sweeter. 

But there was just one person missing from the celebration - his father, Charles Peterson, who passed away in 2020.

“That’s the first thing I thought of," Kolesar said immediately after hoisting the Cup. "I know he’s looking down right now and he’s over-the-moon happy. And then I see my brother and sister and we had a big hug and a little bit of tears. We know he’d love to be in this moment. He was a competitor, he was a gamer, he loved sports and would have loved to see us win.”

A former minor league baseball star with the Winnipeg Goldeyes, Peterson was the one Kolesar called 'dad'. His life was cut short amid the COVID pandemic.

"He passed away three years ago from COVID," Kolesar said. "I know he’d be jumping up and down for everyone here. And I just look up and know he’s looking down. I’m just so proud I could do this and I know he’d be proud too."

Asked by Golden Knights television host Daren Millard what he would say to his father in the moment, the former Winnipeg Thrashers AAA star just shook his head, "Would you ever believe it? Would you ever fu**ing believe it?"

Millard, who also hails from Manitoba, followed up by asking Kolesar if he ever envisioned himself in the spot he was in that moment.

"It’s hard to believe still," Kolesar said. "But now I believe it... This is the best feeling in the world. I don’t even know where the Cup is, I can’t even see it, but my God, I can’t wait to kiss it."

Oh, and it wasn't just a kiss Kolesar had in mind.

"I can’t wait to drink beer out of it," he laughed.

30 feet to Kolesar's right, GM Kelly McCrimmon was being interviewed by Sportsbet's Elliotte Friedman. 

The mastermind behind the Golden Knights' roster construction, cap management and contract juggling was all smiles as his years long project finally found the success he so envisioned. 

"You have to have some things go your way," the long-time Brandon Wheat Kings executive reflected. "We had good health, and that’s part of how this happens."

But much like Kolesar, there was one empty seat in the McCrimmon section at T-Mobile Arena.

Kelly's brother, Brad, who skated in over 1,200 NHL games and earned a Stanley Cup with the Calgary Flames, passed away as a coach in the Yaroslavl Lokomotiv plane wreck of 2011. 

For the younger McCrimmon, Tuesday night was a full-circle moment, as his name will now be etched into hockey's greatest trophy, joining that of his brother's. 

“It’s an honour," McCrimmon told Friedman emotionally. "It’s surreal and overwhelming."

"I talked to my dad this morning. My mom and dad are still alive. This will be something that I know is important to them. Brad and Maureen’s son Liam is here with us for the championship game. That part is special as well. These things are only special if you have the right people to share them with.”

In hand selecting his team, McCrimmon certainly had the right players to get the job done. Never one to stray far from his former perch on the bench of the Wheat Kings, the 62-year-old took a former captain from Brandon and made him the leader of the Knights, and then added another 18 Canadians to the fold. 

The perfect recipe. 

"There’s a lot of western guys and a lot of my fellow Manitoba boys, so we were tight," Kolesar said of his group. "We just have the best locker room. No matter where you’re from, everyone gels so well in this room. There’s no egos, but just camaraderie and brotherhood. It makes every day coming to the rink the most fun time in the world."

For Kolesar and McCrimmon, the party is just getting started. The Stanley Cup will now begin is one-year residency in Las Vegas, with stops all across Canada as the Golden Knights take turns enjoying their time with the trophy.