3 Golden Knights-Mammoth bold predictions for 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs

The Stanley Cup playoffs are set to begin on Saturday. The Utah Mammoth will face the Vegas Golden Knights, as Game 1 between the Mammoth and Golden Knights is set for Sunday.

The Golden Knights head to the playoffs for a fourth straight season and eighth time in their nine seasons of existence. The Golden Knights finished the season 39-26-17, earning them the Pacific Division title for the fifth time in franchise history. The team is 13th in the NHL in scoring, scoring 3.22 goals per game, but was solid on the powerplay this year, sitting sixth in the league. The defense was middle of the pack during the regular season, giving up 2.95 goals per game, good for 12th in the league. The penalty kill was solid, though, ranked seventh overall.

Meanwhile, the Mammoth are heading to the playoffs for the first time in franchise history. It is their first season under the Mammoth moniker, and just their second season since acquiring the assets for the Arizona Coyotes franchise. The Coyotes had not made the playoffs since 2020. At 43-32-6, the Mammoth earned the second wild card spot after finishing fourth in the Central Division. Utah finished with 3.27 goals per game, the tenth-best mark in the NHL. Meanwhile, the powerplay struggled, converting on just 20 percent of their chances, which was 18th league-wide. One defense, the Mammother were tied for seventh in goals agaisnt per game, but 19th on the penalty kill.

This year, the two teams faced off three times. The Golden Knights took the first game, on November 20, winning 4-1 on the road. Just four days later, the Mammother took a 5-1 win on home ice. The last meeting was in Vegas on March 19, with Utah taking the 4-0 victory.

Goaltending changes the series

Goaltending has been an issue for the Golden Knights this year. Due to injuries, four different netminders have tended the twine for the team. Akira Schmid has seen the bulk of the workload this year. He went 16-10-6 with a 2.59 goals agaisnt average and a .893 save percentage. Of the four goaltenders, he has the best goals against average and save percentage, but he also struggled after the Olympic break. Schmid also has not seen the ice since March 21, before John Tortarella took over as the head coach. Since then, it has been Adin Hill and Carter Hart.

Hill went 10-9-6 on the season, with a 3.04 goals against average and a .871 save percentage. Meanwhile, Carter Hart played in 18 games, going 11-3-3 with a 2.71 goals against average and a .891 save percentage. Hart has been the primary goalie recently, playing six games in April, and going 6-0 with a 1.66 goals against average and a .930 save percentage. If Hill can keep up this pace, the Golden Knights will be in a stellar position to win the series. If he reverts to how he played after joining the team, in the 12 games from December into January, Tortarella will be forced to make a change.

Meanwhile, the Mammoth goaltending situation is stable. Karel Vejmelka went 38-20-3 on the year with a 2.73 goals-against average and a .897 save percentage. While he was great nearly all year, he was not as good at the end of the season. Vejmelka has a 3.03 goals-against average with a .886 save percentage in his last six games. Still, he went 5-1-0 thanks to some stellar offense.

Both teams have had ups and downs in goal, but the team that figures out the battle of the net first will win the series. Based on the body of work, the battle leans toward the Mammoth.

Clayton Keller shines in the series

There is no shortage of firepower between the two teams that will be taking the ice in this series. The Golden Knights will be led by Jack Eichel and Mitch Marner. Eichel led the team with 90 points this season, coming in with 27 goals and a team-leading 63 assists. Meanwhile, he had 26 assists on the powerplay. Marner scored 24 goals this year, while dishing out 56 helpers, good for 80 points. The team also has Pavel Dorofeyev, who beat the netminder 37 times this year, while chipping in another 27 assists.

On the other side, Nick Schmaltz and Dylan Guenther have been great. Schmaltz has lit the lamp 33 times while dropping the assist 41 times, good for 74 points. Meanwhile, Guenther has found the back of the net 40 times while dropping 33 helpers, good for 73 points. Still, the star of the show is going to be Clayton Keller. He led the team in points this year, with 86, via 26 goals and 60 assists. He also had 27 powerplay tallies. Keller has been to the playoffs before and shone. In nine games in 202 with the Coyotes, he scored four times and added three assists, and led the team in scoring.

He was just 21-years old in that series, and now comes in with more experience to draw from this time around. He also had three points in three games with the Golden Knights this season, and has had past success against the club. All of this will lead to a breakout series for Keller and help the Mammoth contend against Vegas.

It is not midnight for Cinderella yet

The Mammoth are wonderful story, taking the assets from a franchise that was one of the worst in the NHL in their last four seasons of existence, moving them to Utah, and creating hype around a new team. Not only did that new team bring fans, but they delivered wins. They built a solid core with Keller, Guenther, and Logan Cooley, plus have brought in players with deep playoff experience, such as Mikhail Sergachev and Vitek Vanecek. Now, they look to build on their first campaign.

They have played well against Vegas this year, and while the Golden Knights have been solid since Tortarella took over, they have faced just two teams that will be going to the playoffs. Utah has grinded in the hardest division in the NHL, coming out with a playoff berth. They went 5-6-0 against Dallas, Colorado, and Minnesota this season, the top three teams in the Western Conference. The team has the better defensive unit and has more scoring depth. While injuries to some key Mammoth players may be a concern, they have enough depth to overcome, and will do just that. The Mammoth take the series in six games.

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