It was Colorado's first appearance in the Finals, in only their first season in Denver since moving from Quebec City (where they had formerly played as the Nordiques) in 1995. It was also Florida's first appearance in the Finals, in only the franchise's third season since entering the NHL in 1993 and they would not appear again until , after they swept the Carolina Hurricanes in four games in the Eastern Conference final. Only four other teams have made their first Stanley Cup Finals appearance faster: the Toronto Arenas winning the Stanley Cup in the NHL inaugural season in , the St. Louis Blues in their debut season in (they lost the Finals to the Montreal Canadiens), the Vegas Golden Knights in their inaugural year in , and the Cup-winning New York Rangers (who were in their second season of play, having been formed for the season). This was also the first time since the formation of the NHL in 1917 that the two teams competing for the Cup were making their first Finals appearance.
