You know, life is too short for celebrating the good times. After soundly defeating the Utah Mammoth on Friday, 5-1, the Vegas Golden Knights must focus on their next opponent. That would be the Anaheim Ducks, who took the season series from the Golden Knights by winning all three games. In sports terms, we call that a sweep.
While there's a caveat to that regular-season sweep (two wins weren't in regulation), there are noted similarities between the Ducks and the Mammoth. Both are young teams that have numerous players getting their first tastes of playoff glory. The Mammoth had an average age of 28.15 (20th in the NHL), while the Ducks had an average age of 27.88 (22nd in the NHL).
They also play similar styles, with both teams running up-tempo offenses. Expect plenty of rushes from the Ducks the same way that the Mammoth provided against the Golden Knights in the first round. Think of last season with the Minnesota Wild, who had Vegas pinned against the wall with Matt Boldy and Kirill Kaprizov.
But! There's always a but! There are notable differences between the Mammoth and the Ducks. In fact, these two differences will make life much harder for the Golden Knights in the second round. Let's go quackers (waka waka) over these two differences and see what the Golden Knights are up against.
Joel Quenneville is a much more experienced head coach than Andre Tourigny
One massive advantage that John Tortorella had over Andre Tourigny was his playoff experience. Like, how are you supposed to compete with a two-time Jack Adams winner and a former Stanley Cup champion? That made life easier for the Golden Knights' head coach to stack lines and overwhelm the Mammoth.
However, that isn't the case with Joel Quenneville. The Anaheim Ducks head coach is well-known for his dynastic run with the Chicago Blackhawks, winning three Stanley Cups in the Windy City.
That will make life much harder for Tortorella to stack lines. Quenneville won't be afraid to figure out the best lineup matchups, putting the Golden Knights' head coach up against the wall. Therefore, the former Tampa Bay Lightning coach must be more strategic with who he puts out on the ice.
The Anaheim Ducks are much heavier than the Utah Mammoth
The Vegas Golden Knights had plenty of fun hitting the Utah Mammoth in the first round. In fact, the Golden Knights had 241 hits in the series. While that's a fun stat to throw out, the Mammoth is a smaller team than the Anaheim Ducks.
The Ducks have an average weight of 205 lbs., tied for second in the NHL. Meanwhile, the Mammoth have an average weight of 198 lbs., which is tied for 19th. Anaheim also uses that size for a more physical style.
The Ducks had 1,718 team hits during the regular season, 13th in the NHL. Of course, the Golden Knights were right behind them with 1,713. But expect a more physical series between both teams.
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