By the time the Golden Knights take the ice Sunday morning against Detroit, it will be 30 days exactly until the season ends and the great neapolitan swirl of drama and joy and heartbreak and unpredictable chaos that is the Stanley Cup Playoffs begins. It's a time where Wild Card races gets hyped and pundits start making predictions on who will win each conference, which (like the Wild Card races) will probably change more times than a panicked chameleon from here to April 16th.
As for Vegas, this year, it marks a rare period of quiet in terms of the wider hockey world. One that I think could turn into a boom for this team heading into the postseason, especially if they can try to address a lingering issue for this team (and a previous Knightcap subject): their play on the road.
Heading into tomorrow morning's game in Buffalo, Vegas is 15-12-4 on the Road with a +2 goal differential. Of those 15 road wins, only three had the Golden Knights either in the lead or tied after the first. After the Avalanche game on November 27, Vegas were tied or held a lead after the first once (January 24 against Dallas) in the last nine road losses. A similar picture starts to come into view when you take a look at last season.
The Golden Knights were 14-16-2 on the Road at this point in 2023-24 with a -3 goal differential. Of those 14 wins, 11 of those started with Vegas up or tied after the first. Conversely, out of the 18 losses, six had the Golden Knights up or tied after the first. Not numbers that elicit a lot of comforting happy thoughts, especially compared to the Cup year around this time: 20-10-2, a +23 goal differential, only eight times did Vegas trail after the first.
How to fix these road woes over the next four weeks? Columbus last night provided the perfect road map, especially on the defensive side. Though you can sum it with two simple words: Just win. History shows us how effective it works. Last season, the Golden Knights went 3-4-0 on the road the rest of the way with a -6 goal differential, typified by a crushing first round loss to Dallas. The Stanley Cup year? It was 5-2-1 with a +3 goal differential.
Other Bits from "Around the Realm":
- From a fourth shutout to a brand-new contract, it was a hell of a 24 hours for Adin Hill to put it mildly! The annual adjusted value for next season ($6.25 million) puts him between Connor Hellebuyck in Winnipeg ($8.5 million) and Mackenzie Blackwood in Colorado ($5.5 million). Honestly, given his performance this season, it makes sense. Just leaves Nicolas Hague as the big offseason question in the summer, which is a nice change of pace compared to last season's messiness.
- It seems like William Karlsson is close to a return. He showed up for practice in a no-contact jersey last week before the Toronto game, and for the first game of the road trip Tuesday in Pittsburgh. Then, before last night's big win in Columbus, he pops up for his first taste of regular practice since the injury. So...Detroit seems like a pretty good bet when it'll happen, if he's coming back this weekend. All of which begs the larger question if that's the case: what'll the lines look like when Karlsson officially comes back?
- Finally, it's not really connected to the team. But the team helping alongside the Clark County School District to get a high school hockey league going starting in April. It's something the owner's been building the past few years in Southern Nevada that I'd love to see them try to branch up to Northern Nevada one day. Here's hoping this new league is the first piece toward that.