Remember when this sign was kind of a joke? (Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)

The Golden Knights are currently sitting comfortably in second place in a lackluster Pacific Division. Sure, Anaheim Coach Randy Carlyle thinks some of it could be luck, but a 9-1-0 divisional record is more than a few friendly bounces. Outside of the Pacific, Vegas is 8-8-1 which makes the Golden Knights divisional record that more important.

Arizona is the only team out of the race, but the rest of the Pacific considers themselves in contention, which could create a dogfight for 3-4 open postseason spots, San Jose, Anaheim, Calgary, and Edmonton are all unhappy with their records but they’re far from giving up. Especially when they’re looking up at Vancouver and some expansion team.

HockeyReference.com’s group of hockey prophets continue to predict the postseason future of the league. HR’s Playoff Probability Report runs 1,000 simulations and spits out the results.

Playoff Probability %

Los Angeles 93.9%
Vegas 80.9%
San Jose 62.6%
Vancouver 54.1%
Calgary 30.8%
Anaheim 24.1%
Edmonton 9.9%
Arizona 0.2%

Vegas fans should feel good about HockeyReference.com’s 80.9% playoff prediction. It practically matches the Thanksgiving playoff study we carved into last month. (C’mon, carved. Get it. I thought Golden Knights fans loved puns?) When it comes to HR’s best-case scenario, the Golden Knights are pushing for a President’s Trophy.

Best Case Scenario

Los Angeles 124 Points
Vegas 119 Points
San Jose 115 Points
Vancouver 112 Points
Anaheim 109 Points
Calgary 106 Points
Edmonton 103 Points
Arizona 92 Points

That trophy tends to be an annual jinx on the NHL’s best team though. Maybe Gerard Gallant will sit the stars for a couple of late-season games. Fans should be okay tanking a few games to avoid a playoff hex.

Worst Case Scenario

Los Angeles 77 Points
Vegas 75 Points
San Jose 73 Points
Vancouver 71 Points
Calgary 67 Points
Anaheim 66 Points
Edmonton 57 Points
Arizona 53 Points

In this case, we better hope George McPhee made a killing at the deadline. I can only imagine the secondary ticket market then. Cheap plug, always buy your Golden Knights tickets on TicketIQ. Thank you.

To continue the fun, the Apostles at HockeyReference.com went even further and offered up Stanley Cup championship percentages.

Chances of Winning the 2018 Stanley Cup

Los Angeles 9.9%
Vegas 4.1%
San Jose 4.1%
Vancouver 2.8%
Calgary 0.7%
Anaheim 0.3%
Edmonton 0.2%
Arizona 0.0%

4.1 percent, that’s it? What is this the Old Testament?