The Vegas Golden Knights are headed back to the playoffs to defend their Stanley Cup title. The Golden Knights defeated the Minnesota Wild 7-2 on Friday evening, and they have three games remaining to determine whether they will end the season in the first or second Wild Card spot, or third in the Pacific Division.
The Los Angeles Kings sit in third place with 95 points in 79 games played, and the Golden Knights have 94 points in 79 games played. Vegas will face the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday, the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday, and the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday.
Chicago and Anaheim are two of the worst teams in the league, and it is very possible to pick up four points in those two games. The Kings face the Ducks tonight, the Minnesota Wild on Monday, and the Blackhawks on Thursday. Their road to pick up points is slightly easier than the Golden Knights.
The Predators have two games remaining, and are in the driver’s seat of the Wild Card race with 97 points in 80 games, and face the Columbus Blue Jackets tonight, and the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday. They can max out at 101 points, and the Golden Knights can max out at 100.
In any case, the Golden Knights are starting to get their roster ready for the playoffs. Mark Stone recently returned to practice, Tomas Hertl is getting acclimated to his new teammates, and the only player they are waiting on is Alex Pietrangelo who remains out with an illness. He will not play on Sunday vs. the Avalanche, and I’d imagine they are holding him out until the playoffs because there’s no real reason to play him at this point.
Speaking of Sunday’s game, the Golden Knights and Avalanche will be taking part in the MultiVersus NHL Face-Off on truTV and MAX, and it intends to be a broadcast to show hockey in a whole new way.