When it comes to the schedule, it might be true that it all evens out in the end, but there are times during a season when one team might be getting it worse than the rest, and that's certainly the case for the Vegas Golden Knights right now.
Vegas is about to begin a four-game road swing against the Islanders, Devils, Rangers and Blue Jackets which will run the club's road games total up to 22 on the season. The Golden Knights have played just 14 games at home so far; and that ratio is quite out of whack.
Vegas owns a record of 17-14-1 for 35 points and the final wild card spot in the Western Conference. To date, the Golden Knights are 10-3-1 at T-Mobile Arena and 7-11 when playing elsewhere.
Vegas is playing much better as a whole these days and the road record should improve as a result. If both home and away records stay at their current ratios, the heavier home schedule will buoy the overall record.
Vegas Showing Improvement Despite Tough Road Schedule
The unsaid but obvious reality for the Golden Knights this season was to stay in the hunt until the end of the current road trip and then take advantage of a much friendlier schedule from Christmas and beyond to shoot up the standings. Vegas plays just 10 road games after this road trip until the end of February against 19 home dates.
Being in a playoff spot at this point is a victory. Vegas has hung around and stayed in the mix. The next trick will be to take advantage of a softer schedule.
Put The Puck In The Net
Vegas has won eight of its last 10 and while there are number of factors in that stretch, one of the biggest is the club's improved shooting percentage.
In the first 22 games of the season, the Golden Knights shot at 7.8 percent putting up 57 goals and a record of 9-12-1. In the last 10 games they've shot at 11.98 percent and scored 38 goals while winning eight and losing just two.
The Numbers
First 22 games
Record: 9-12-1
2.6 goals per game
3.0 goals against per game
17.8 percent PP
82.1 percent PK
6-5-1 when scoring first
3-7-0 when giving up the first goal
Last 10
Record: 8-2-0
3.8 goals per game
2.3 goals against per game
22.9 percent PP
85.7 percent PK
5-1-0 when scoring first
3-1-0 when giving up the first goal
William Karlsson has 5 goals in past 8 games; had 5 goals in first 24 games
Reilly Smithhas 3-11-14 in past 12 games; had 3-4-7 in first 20 games
Max Paciorettyhas 8-6-14 in past 11 games; 2-2-4 in first 16 games he played
Alex Tuch has 5-5-10 in past 10 games
Marc-Andre Fleury was 9-8-1, 2.63 goals against, .901 save percentage through Nov. 19; last 10 games is 8-2-0, 2.30 goals against, .920 save percentage.
Some Stats
-The Golden Knights lead the league with 346 takeaways and are one of four teams this season taking the puck from its opponents more often than they give it away. They also lead the league with a +37 differential in takeaways vs. giveaways (346-309).
St. Louis is +30 (213-183)
Minnesota is +18 (199-181)
Carolina is +12 (315-303)
-The Golden Knights are one of three teams who have five players that have scored at least 10 goals this season. As a team, the Golden Knights rank 11th with 95 goals this season, but since Nov. 1, Vegas is tied for the second most goals in the league with Ottawa at 69 goals.
Most Players with 10+ Goals - 2018-19
Lightning 5
Penguins 5
Golden Knights 5 (Eakin, Marchessault, Pacioretty, Karlsson, Tuch)
Wild 4
Flames 4
Avalanche 4
Canadiens 4
-Marc-Andre Fleury has been busy through the first two months of the season and leads the league with 17 wins, 28 games played and starts, 1652:10 time on ice and five shutouts. Despite leading the league in games played, he ranks fourth both in shots against with 753 and saves with 684. Compared to last year at this time he was limited to four games due to injury. It is the busiest Fleury has been to start a regular season in his career. Through Dec. 10, Fleury has recorded 17 wins twice before (2009 and 2013) and the most appearances he has made was 27 in 2013. Before this season, the most time on ice he accumulated to start a year was also in 2013 when he played 1580:52
-William Carrier leads the league with 165 hits in 32 games. He is on pace to register 422.8 hits this season, which would surpass the NHL record of 382 hits set by the New York Islanders Matt Martin during the 2014-15 season. His linemate Ryan Reaves ranks second in the league with 127 hits and is on pace to record 325.4 hits this season. The last time that two teammates finished first and second in hits was in 2014-15 when Martin and teammate Cal Clutterbuckfinished with 382 and 343 hits, respectively. As a team, the Islanders led the league with 2685 hits during the 2014-15 season.
-Brayden McNabb is the only player in the league who has recorded at least 60 blocked shots and 70 hits this season. McNabb, who has turned in 61 blocked shots and 77 hits this season, finished with career-highs in both categories last season with the Golden Knights (176 blocked shots and 225 hits) and was the only player who recorded at least 170 blocked shots and 220 hits.
