Ducks’ Recurrence Means Golden Knights – Hockey Writers – Vegas Golden Knights
The Anaheim Ducks are “real.” The Vegas Golden Knights found themselves as the Ducks went 4-3 in Overtome Overday on Saturday night. The former Golden Knights bag punchers have resumed and are not only the leaders of the Pacific Division, but also contending for the top spot in the conference.
Related: 3 Golden Knights Takeaways for the Month of October
This cannot help Home-ice only the playoffs, but because it highlights a troubling pattern: when the gold results do not cause this section, their postseason results suffer. The Golden Knights’ margin of error is shrinking, and every slip at home or in important ways is magnified.
News of the Ducks’ rise, and forcing a five-game winning streak into a corner this early in the season. Of the group it is built on victory Instead of simply competing, the statistical superiority has never been greater. But perhaps this is for the best, as the Gerden Knights can face their mistakes now rather than later.
Losing categories is more important than you think
Winning the division may sound like window dressing in October, but with Gervening Gerden, it has proven to be a predictor of deep postseason success. The Ducks have won six straight and lead the Golden Knights 21-18 in points. If this holds, it will be only the fourth time the Golden Knights are undefeated in franchise history. Each of them three times, three times, did not make it past the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
There is some potential good news for the Golden Knights, however. The Ducks may not match their hot streak. The return can come for the Ducks, who are red-hot and scoring 4.14 goals per game. They have a plus-13 goal difference despite only fouling opponents (431-426) and fouls – even on special teams with mediocre numbers (214.5% penalty kill percentage).
At 5-on-5, the Ducks also excel in advanced metrics. Per hockey index, he has a PDO of 102.3 (fifth in the league) and a real plus-15 in goal difference against the goal (tied for first). Conversely, the Golden Knights are below average in PDO (98.9) and third worst in goal separation (minus-8).
Indeed, these metrics may not represent 82 games. The oddsmakers still highly expect the glider knights to win the division at 54.5%. The Ducks are still the runner-up with only 11.8%. While the Gerden Knights can’t just “hope” the Ducks to slow down, it’s also hard to see the NHL’s youngest team sustaining this scintillating streak.
The Golden Knights need to do the obvious: Win more games. If they finish the regular season to eliminate the Ducks, they will face a tough road in the playoffs. There will be a few home games, tight matcoups, and a little bit of someone’s kindness. This would make general manager Kelly McCrimmon even more so now.
Golden Knights pressured to make a big move?
The golden knights may be making a blockbuster deal soon. Their margin of error is shrinking and the damage is constantly increasing. Center William Karlsson has now joined Skipper Mark Stone in the side. GoalTender’s durability remains in question. The club’s current starter, Akira Schmid, is 6-1 with a 2.51 goals-against (GAA) and .901 Save percentage (SV%) thus far.
This is decent, but not elite, especially when the netminder of the team takes out the golden knights (like Petr Razek’s ducks on Sunday).
This is a franchise that has always gone out of its way to get a superstar at no cost. The Golden Kintlights split with Jack Eichel tackled a few pitches ago. They did a great offseason dealing with Mitch Marner, as well as getting some pieces of fire to blame for the rest of the roster. And of course, Carter Hart on purpose.
With ducks charging forward, there is little room for patience. Failure to do (or failure to do) can mean that the division is divided, not because of performance, but because of lack of urgency. The power of the group – that – has proven to err on the side of certainty.
The ducks surge is forcing the golden knights to dig deep this early
If there is a silver lining, say the golden knights have faced adversity before and come out strong. Their heroic Pedigree was not built on the beach. It is built on course preparation, calculated risks, and the ability to adapt (especially due to injuries).
The rise of the ducks may make the vision of the Golden Knights a little brighter now, but it would be very difficult for the spark that forces the 2023 champions to rediscover what made them the most brutal frontrunners. Whether it’s through trade, tactical oversight, or a renewed sense of urgency, the golden knights are still in control of their destiny. This window will not stay open forever.
If the ducks continue to win while the golden knights remain worried, this season could put an unpleasant torch on the Porch in the Pacific. But if the Golden Knights reassert their identity as a focused, relentless, and incremental machine, the Ducks’ early surge will serve as a wake-up call and not a scene.
The next few weeks will determine exactly what will happen to the golden knights. They can be Pusani Pacific Carfication, clinging to the new army of opponents, or they will not ask and look up to the new power of the league.
