Stanley Cup Playoffs 2018: Vegas Golden Knights Are No Longer Underdogs

When the Vegas Golden Knights held the first expansion draft in nearly 20 years, it was impossible to tell that they’d wind up here, the Pacific Division champs.

The Vegas Golden Knights are the best team in the Pacific division, at least through the regular season. This time last year, the Knights didn’t even have a full roster. They were figuring out how to build a team for the future, through trades, draft picks, and expansion draft selections. After a historic first season, they’re preparing for the Stanley Cup Playoffs 2018.

They are readying themselves for the first playoff round in franchise history. Their first opponent will be their division rival and natural arch-nemesis Los Angeles Kings. So how does an expansion team, the first to make the postseason since the Original Six era, compete in the playoffs in year one?

The Vegas Golden Knights’ secret: Depth

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Depth has been the Golden Knights’ weapon the entire season. Not only do they have a roster with elite penalty killers like Tomas Nosek and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare on their fourth line – a fourth line that occasionally throws in points, as well – they have Alex Tuch (15 goals, 37 points) on their third line.

Boston Bruins castaway Colin Miller (10-31–41), their leader in points among blue-liners, is on the Golden Knights’ third pairing. The depth of the Knights has been what has compelled the team to a division title and to home-ice advantage through at least the second round.

That depth will have to continue to be special. With the first line likely going up against Anze Kopitar and the second line being assigned Jeff Carter, the puck will have to be owned by the bottom six.

Franchise goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury has to be on this season, better than he was down the stretch in the Ottawa series. The first line also has to get their looks in, especially with Reilly Smith back healthy.

Speaking of healthy, the Knights finally are again. They sustained multiple injuries over the course of the season. That started with the goaltenders, as each of their first three went down with long-term injuries early in the season. Fleury suffered a concussion against the Detroit Red Wings. Malcolm Subban went down with a groin injury, and Oscar Dansk left with an undisclosed injury.

Related Story: Golden Knights vs. Kings Series Preview

And yet the Vegas Golden Knights survived. They went 6-6-1 in their original stretch with Max Lagace, their fourth goaltender. Those 13 points propelled them to the third-best record in the West. It’s hard to tell if another team could do that well in front of their fourth goaltender.

The Golden Knights also suffered numerous injuries past January, including players like Oscar Lindberg, Reilly Smith, Jonathan Marchessault, Shea Theodore, David Perron, James Neal, Luca Sbisa, Malcolm Subban, and William Carrier. About half their roster at some point was injured in the second half. But now, the Knights are healthy. Perfect timing.

The Kings and the Knights split the season series, each going 2-1-1 and getting five points. The Knights won the first two, the Kings the second pair. This is going to be a clash of Pacific division titans. The Vegas Golden Knights know they need to come out the other side, and come out strong.

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They’re untested, but don’t expect anything less than 100% from the Golden Knights. Who knows? Maybe the Knights’ miracle season has what it takes to go all the way.

Check out our Stanley Cup Playoffs 2018 hub page for updated postseason coverage