Tag: Playoffs Page 1 of 15

The VGK Playoff Picture Chart Returns

On March 27, 2026

The playoff race is officially on, and the Golden Knights are right in the thick of it. So, it’s time to bring back our yearly playoff picture end-of-season tracker.

For the most part, the chart is self-explanatory, but let’s explain it all anyway.

This chart will be updated on social media on the day after each VGK game.

Schedule: Shows the final 10 games for each team and will be updated nightly with results.

Points: Standings points

Games left: In case you don’t feel like counting the schedule above.

Points For VGK to Clinch: This is our “Points To Elimination” stat. It’s the combination of points gained by VGK and points lost by each particular opponent to ensure VGK finish ahead of that team.

Points to clinch vs VGK: The opposite of the previous row. It’s the number of points (won by that team and lost by VGK) needed for VGK to no longer be able to finish above that team.

Strength of Schedule: The combined points percentage of all teams left on the schedule.

Points Percentage to reach XX: Meant to show how well each team must play if another team reaches each plateau. Helps to illustrate the difference in games left to play.

HockeyStats.com Playoff Opponent Probability: Shows the team VGK are projected to play in the first round of the playoffs should they qualify. Visit HockeyStats.com for tons of interesting statistical breakdowns both of playoff probabilities and advanced stats.

MoneyPuck.com Odds: A pre-game prediction model including ability to win, scoring chances, goaltending, home/away/rest, and more to project the winner of each game. Then runs 100,000 simulations using those percentages to predict the outcome of the season.

Luszczyszyn Odds: Dom Luszczyszyn of The Athletic/NY Times projection model which runs 50,000 simulations factoring in projected team strength, health, strength of schedule, and more.

Hockey-Reference Odds: A strictly statistical model from Hockey-Reference.com using previous results to predict future ones.

*Huge stick taps to all four websites for their prediction models and Kevin Charles for helping to create the chart on SinBin.vegas.*

A Look At The Current State Of VGK’s Points To Elimination

By Ken Boehlke

On March 17, 2026

In Stats

(Photo Credit: @GoldenKnights on X/Twitter)

There are just 15 games left on the schedule, which means it’s officially time to start checking in on Points To Elimination.

For those new to SinBin.vegas, Points To Elimination is a stat we created in Year 1 to track exactly how close the Golden Knights are to clinching a playoff berth. Like a “magic number” in baseball, Points To Elimination are ticked off each time Vegas earn points and when opposing teams fail to earn them.

Current VGK Points To Elimination
Vancouver 5
Calgary 14
Los Angeles 26
Seattle 28
Edmonton 28
San Jose 29
Anaheim 32

Chicago 18
St. Louis 19
Winnipeg 23
Nashville 24
Utah 29
Minnesota 41
Dallas 49
Colorado 54

To clinch a playoff berth, the Golden Knights need to reduce the number to zero for either five teams in the Pacific or eight teams in the Western Conference.

With 15 games to go, VGK have a total of 30 points in their control. Every other team in the West has between 14 and 17 games left. Here’s a look at the percentage of points necessary for the Golden Knights to eliminate each team. (These are points won by VGK or lost by each team)

12-Game Skid vs Playoff Teams: VGK Must Reverse Course Quickly To Stay Afloat

By Ken Boehlke

On March 3, 2026

In Game Analysis

(Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)

A troubling trend has not yet corrected itself for the Golden Knights this season. After falling to the Penguins on Sunday afternoon, VGK have now dropped 12 consecutive games to teams currently sitting in playoff position.

Their overall record against playoff opponents is now 5-10-10, or a .400 points percentage. And the record against the seven other Western Conference playoff teams is a dismal 1-6-6, or .308 points percentage.

We shared this chart back in December, but it’s worth bringing back up to illustrate just how far off the pace VGK are from where they’ve been in the past against the league’s elites.

Season	vs. West	vs. East	Total	Points Percentage
25‑26	1-6-6	4-4-4	5-10-10	0.400
24‑25	12‑7‑4	8‑7‑1	20‑14‑5	0.577
23‑24	14‑6‑2	7‑9‑0	21‑15‑2	0.579
22‑23	13‑8‑3	9‑5‑2	22‑13‑5	0.613
21‑22	13‑11‑2	7‑7‑2	20‑18‑4	0.524
20‑21	13‑9‑2	N/A	13‑9‑2	0.583
19‑20	11‑6‑1	6‑6‑4	17‑12‑5	0.574
18‑19	10‑12‑1	6‑9‑1	16‑21‑2	0.436
17‑18	14‑7‑3	10‑5‑1	24‑12‑4	0.650

Golden Knights Still In Great Playoff Shape, Safety Net Has Disappeared Though

By Ken Boehlke

On February 3, 2026

In Stats

(Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)

Despite winning just nine of their last 24 games, the Golden Knights remain in their usual spot atop the Pacific Division. However, the struggles since the middle of December have taken a toll on how comfortably inside the playoffs Vegas sits.

On December 13th, when VGK won their 16th game of the season, their points percentage improved to a stellar .661. At the time, it was the 3rd best mark in the Western Conference, and the lead in the Pacific was a solid 52 percentage points over the Anaheim Ducks.

Looking further down, the last team in the playoffs at that time was San Jose with a .530 points percentage and Seattle sat on the outside at .517. Vegas were a mile away from any level of danger, sitting six points and .131 ahead of San Jose and 11 points and .144 from Seattle.

Then, the Golden Knights went through a wildly streaky section of the schedule, dropping eight of nine, winning seven straight, and most recently losing seven of the last eight. After last night’s action, the numbers are much closer than they were six weeks ago.

Edmonton is tied with Vegas in points and just 11 percentage points behind. Utah, the last team in the playoffs, is just three points away, and all three of the Mammoth, Kings, and Ducks are within 30 percentage points of the Golden Knights.

The cushion has essentially disappeared, and the group of chasers is growing by the day.

Golden Knights Remain Winless Against Western Conference’s Best Teams

By Ken Boehlke

On December 30, 2025

In Team Ops

(Photo Credit: @mnwild on X/Twitter)

Last night, the Golden Knights got their butts kicked by the Minnesota Wild, one of the Western Conference elites. Two nights earlier, VGK gave up multiple two-goal leads and a late game-tying goal to Colorado, ultimately losing in shootout, to another one of the Western Conference elites. About a week earlier, Vegas found themselves in a 4-0 hole in Edmonton and went on to lose in regulation to yet another one of the Western Conference elites.

You’re probably recognizing a trend, and it’s a troubling one.

This season, the Golden Knights are winless in nine games against teams currently sitting in playoff position by points percentage. That’s the Avalanche, Stars, Wild, Oilers, Ducks, Kings, and Kraken. VGK are a combined 0-3-6 against those teams and have a goal differential of -12.

Going back to last year, Vegas have now lost 12 straight games against Western Conference playoff opponents. They have just one win (over Minnesota last year) in their last 17 games and have a record of 1-9-7 in those games.

It’s a bit better against the best teams in the Eastern Conference, but still nothing to get excited about. VGK have won four of their 12 games against the East’s best for a record of 4-5-3.

Thus, VGK have a combined record of 4-8-9 against this year’s current playoff teams. Four wins in 21 games. A points percentage of .405, which would be the worst in the NHL… by a lot (Chicago .447).

Historically, VGK Teams Have Done Just Fine While On The Wrong Side Of The Playoff Cut Line

By Ken Boehlke

On November 17, 2025

In Stats

(Photo Credit: @mnwild on X/Twitter)

If this season has felt weird, that’s because it has been. 18 games into the season, the Golden Knights have been on the outside of the playoff picture for five days and have played each of the last three games on the wrong side of the cut line.

That may seem like nothing, but it’s the longest stretch they’ve been outside of the playoffs at any point since the season they missed in 21-22. In the Bruce Cassidy era, VGK have been in ninth place or worse in the Western Conference when they took the ice just four times, and three of them have been in the last week.

Cassidy’s teams have been up to the test. This weekend, they posted a win and an overtime loss, while the final game of the homestand was also an OTL. Add those into the October 22, 2024, win over the Kings, and the Golden Knights have recorded at least a point in every game they’ve been out of the playoffs since Cassidy took over.

During each of the Pete DeBoer and Gerard Gallant eras, there was a season that VGK found themselves on the outside looking in, and in both cases, they also performed quite well.

In 21-22, the year Vegas ultimately missed out, they posted an impressive 18-9-3 record in games when they were outside of the playoff picture. Unfortunately, that team struggled when they played games on the correct side of the line, and it sunk them.

In 2019-20, the year Gallant was fired, VGK played just six games, while outside of the playoffs, they went 4-2-0. Gallant’s Golden Knights were in 1st place when the calendar flipped. They fell out of the playoffs for a few days, Gallant was fired, and DeBoer’s teams picked up a win and an OT loss and never fell out of the picture again.

Finally, the 2018-19 team had a slow start, losing four of their first five games. That team played 29 games outside of the playoff picture and went 16-12-1. There was a winning streak at the end of it, which helped them reclaim 3rd place in the Pacific in January and they never let go.

Overall, the Golden Knights have played 67 of their 637 games while outside of the playoff picture. They are 40-21-6 (.642) when they aren’t in the playoffs, while 330-181-59 (.631) when in. By points percentage, VGK are actually better on the outside than they are on the inside.

If the Oilers pick up a point tonight in Buffalo or the Mammoth win in Anaheim, Vegas will hit the ice tomorrow on the wrong side of the line once again. And weirdly, it might be the best thing for them.

Last 10 Games Typically Tell VGK’s Future In Playoffs

By Ken Boehlke

On April 8, 2024

In Team Ops

(Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)

There’s always a belief in the NHL that it’s crucial to be hot going into the postseason. For the Golden Knights, it has absolutely proven to be the case in their five previous trips to the playoffs. In the four seasons they ended the year well, they went on extended runs to the Conference Final or beyond. In the two years they stumbled down the stretch, they missed the playoffs and were eliminated in the First Round.

Vegas is currently 3-1-0 in the first four of the final 10 games of this year’s regular season and they have a playoff berth all but officially wrapped up. There are games still on the schedule against two of the three possible opening-round opponents, Vancouver and Edmonton. Here’s a look back at the history of how the season finished and how it turned out.

2022-23
Last 10 Games: 6-1-3
Playoffs – 16-6 (Stanley Cup Champions)

The Golden Knights were winning and scoring in bunches down the stretch last season. They scored three or more goals in 11 of the final 13 games and posted at least four in eight of them. A pair of dominant wins over the Seattle Kraken ended the regular season and helped lock up the #1 seed in the Western Conference. That meant a home game to start the playoffs, which was a dud, a 5-1 loss to Winnipeg. VGK would go on to win each of the next four and start the Second Round with a win as well.

There were two games against an eventual playoff opponent in the final 20 games of the season, a pair of games played consecutively against the Oilers. VGK won in Edmonton and fell at home three days later.