OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post - What Happens In Vegas: A Golden Knights Story

dannibalcorpse · 03-28-2017, 01:32 PM

The regular season has come to a close, and in a stunner that almost no one in the hockey world predicted in September, the Vegas Golden Knights have finished the year 46-30-6 and ride into the playoffs as the number 5 seed! Their first round opponents will be the Winnipeg Jets - the Jets finished the year 49-28-5 behind their strong top line of Nikolaj Ehlers (34-41-75), Mark Scheifele (30-42-72), and Blake Wheeler (28-43-71), and the breakout performance of rookie D Josh Morrissey (17-35-52). The two teams played 5 times during the regular season, with Winnipeg prevailing in 3 of those games.

Vegas comes into the postseason on a high note, going 11-4-2 after the Olympic break to clinch that #5 seed. Tyler Johnson finished the year leading the team with 58 points, including a career-high 35 goals. In fact, there were several players who set personal bests this season - Jakob Silfverberg (20-35-55) and T.J. Brodie (4-44-48) both set career highs in points, while Kevin Shattenkirk’s 18 goals were his career best. The team also saw great second half production from rookie D Julius Honka, who finished the year with 13 goals and 24 assists in 77 games. Craig Anderson took advantage of a lighter schedule in the last quarter of the year to play in the lion’s share of games, finishing the season 36-24-5 with a 2.65 GAA and a .908 SV%. In fact, Anderson found himself in the top 10 league-wide in wins and shutouts - a far cry from his struggles early on in the season.

As has been the case all season, the Chicago Blackhawks ran away with the President’s Trophy - their 59-14-9 record put them well ahead of the second best team in the league, the 53-21-8 Montreal Canadiens. The scoring races got turned on their head in the last few weeks of the season - Alex Ovechkin will be taking home the Rocket Richard with 51 goals, and Nicklas Backstrom will be your Art Ross winner with a 29-75-104 line. Corey Crawford seems to be a lock for the Vezina, leading the league with 53 wins, a 1.66 GAA, & 17 shutouts. The only major goalie category he didn’t lead was save percentage - his .925 was just behind Carey Price’s .927.

The Stanely Cup playoffs are about to get underway, and here are your full matchups:

Buffalo Sabres (39-34-9) v. Montreal Canadiens (53-21-8)

Detroit Red Wings (41-28-13) v. Ottawa Senators (49-24-9)

Boston Bruins (46-32-4) v. Washington Capitals (51-22-9)

Columbus Blue Jackets (41-37-4) v. New York Rangers (49-28-5)

Minnesota Wild (45-33-4) v. Chicago Blackhawks (59-14-9)

Vegas Golden Knights (46-30-6) v. Winnipeg Jets (49-28-5)

St. Louis Blues (43-31-8) v. San Jose Sharks (49-28-5)

Calgary Flames (47-33-2) v. Edmonton Oilers (49-29-4)

We'll check back with an update after the round of 16 finishes - can the Golden Knights pull off the impossible and win a playoff round?

03-28-2017, 01:32 PM	#10
dannibalcorpse Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Long Island, NY Posts: 168	The regular season has come to a close, and in a stunner that almost no one in the hockey world predicted in September, the Vegas Golden Knights have finished the year 46-30-6 and ride into the playoffs as the number 5 seed! Their first round opponents will be the Winnipeg Jets - the Jets finished the year 49-28-5 behind their strong top line of Nikolaj Ehlers (34-41-75), Mark Scheifele (30-42-72), and Blake Wheeler (28-43-71), and the breakout performance of rookie D Josh Morrissey (17-35-52). The two teams played 5 times during the regular season, with Winnipeg prevailing in 3 of those games. Vegas comes into the postseason on a high note, going 11-4-2 after the Olympic break to clinch that #5 seed. Tyler Johnson finished the year leading the team with 58 points, including a career-high 35 goals. In fact, there were several players who set personal bests this season - Jakob Silfverberg (20-35-55) and T.J. Brodie (4-44-48) both set career highs in points, while Kevin Shattenkirk’s 18 goals were his career best. The team also saw great second half production from rookie D Julius Honka, who finished the year with 13 goals and 24 assists in 77 games. Craig Anderson took advantage of a lighter schedule in the last quarter of the year to play in the lion’s share of games, finishing the season 36-24-5 with a 2.65 GAA and a .908 SV%. In fact, Anderson found himself in the top 10 league-wide in wins and shutouts - a far cry from his struggles early on in the season. As has been the case all season, the Chicago Blackhawks ran away with the President’s Trophy - their 59-14-9 record put them well ahead of the second best team in the league, the 53-21-8 Montreal Canadiens. The scoring races got turned on their head in the last few weeks of the season - Alex Ovechkin will be taking home the Rocket Richard with 51 goals, and Nicklas Backstrom will be your Art Ross winner with a 29-75-104 line. Corey Crawford seems to be a lock for the Vezina, leading the league with 53 wins, a 1.66 GAA, & 17 shutouts. The only major goalie category he didn’t lead was save percentage - his .925 was just behind Carey Price’s .927. The Stanely Cup playoffs are about to get underway, and here are your full matchups: Buffalo Sabres (39-34-9) v. Montreal Canadiens (53-21-8) Detroit Red Wings (41-28-13) v. Ottawa Senators (49-24-9) Boston Bruins (46-32-4) v. Washington Capitals (51-22-9) Columbus Blue Jackets (41-37-4) v. New York Rangers (49-28-5) Minnesota Wild (45-33-4) v. Chicago Blackhawks (59-14-9) Vegas Golden Knights (46-30-6) v. Winnipeg Jets (49-28-5) St. Louis Blues (43-31-8) v. San Jose Sharks (49-28-5) Calgary Flames (47-33-2) v. Edmonton Oilers (49-29-4) We'll check back with an update after the round of 16 finishes - can the Golden Knights pull off the impossible and win a playoff round?