Some people think the Vegas Golden Knights feast on nothing but bad teams. They have this idea that only the best NHL teams reside in the Eastern Conference, consisting of franchises such as the Washington Capitals and Carolina Hurricanes. However, they also forget that the Edmonton Oilers (with Connor McJesus!) and Minnesota Wild (with Kirill Kaprizov!) also exist. Talk about your East Coast bias, eh?
Sadly, the Anaheim Ducks are one of these bad teams the Golden Knights have feasted on. The Ducks currently sit in seventh place in the Pacific Division with 30 points. Granted, they've been buoyed by excellent goaltending (.910 team save percentage, fifth in the NHL). However, it doesn't help when you're anemic offensively (2.42 goals per game, 31st in the NHL). Better crack out that ol' "Flying V".
Who knows? You should probably break out that knuckle puck, too. The Golden Knights are playing excellent hockey, winning eight of their last 10 games. That doesn't help the road team that's 4-5-1 in their last 10 games, especially when the Golden Knights are in hot pursuit of another Stanley Cup.
Still, there's the possibility of sweeping the homestand (and the season series) on Monday after defeating the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday and the Seattle Kraken on Saturday. Can the Golden Knights do it before the Christmas Break? Or will the Ducks throw everything but the kitchen sink and win?
Sizing up the Anaheim Ducks
The Anaheim Ducks are like a dude with bad pickup lines: They don't know how to score. They've scored 81 goals this season, 31st in the NHL. Their power play (14.3, 29th in the NHL) has also been mediocre, leaving everyone at the club drier than the Las Vegas desert.
Fortunately, the Vegas Golden Knights have a "golden" opportunity to get their penalty kill in order. On Saturday, they allowed two power play goals to the Kraken despite blowing them out, 6-2. Monday's game gives the unit a chance to rebound, preparing for a struggling Ducks team.
But that's not all, though. Will Alexander Holtz finally break through? The winger only has two goals this season, raising concerns about his game. The 22-year-old has also struggled with his shots, posting a 47% Corsi and 46% Fenwick. In fact, Vegas has benefitted from his presence off the ice, for Holtz has an off-ice expected goals percentage of 51.9.
The Golden Knights have seen rebound games from players like Tomas Hertl (two goals and two assists on October 22 against the Los Angeles Kings) and William Karlsson (two goals and one assists on November 15 against the Utah Hockey Club). Can they get such a game from the Swedish forward? If they can, it'll go a long way in ensuring the Golden Knights get two points.
But even if he doesn't, the Golden Knights have a funny way of scoring without Holtz. Entering Monday, they're sixth in the NHL with 3.52 goals per game. It's safe to say they'll sweep the season series, albeit in a tighter game. Let's go with a 3-2 victory for the home team. Jack Eichel and company are rolling right now and it'll be tough to stop them, especially with a middling divisional rival.