The Golden Knights clinched the division title with a 4-1 win over the Seattle Kraken. Under new head coach John Tortorella, who replaced Bruce Cassidy on March 29, the team has gone 7-0-1. Jack Eichel led Vegas in scoring with 88 points, followed by Mitch Marner with 79. However, the team's goaltending has been a concern, with Akira Schmid, Adin Hill, and Carter Hart all posting save percentages below 90.0.
Utah Mammoth, in their second season after relocating from Arizona, secured their playoff berth with a 4-1 win over Nashville and a San Jose loss. Clayton Keller leads the team with 80 points, while goaltender Karel Vejmelka leads the NHL with 60 games played (36-19-3, 89.6 save percentage, 2.75 GAA). The Mammoth rank sixth defensively, allowing 2.90 goals per game. This is their first playoff appearance since 2020.
In their most recent meeting, Utah won 4-2, with Lawson Crouse scoring twice. Mackenzie Weegar and Dylan Guenther also scored for Utah, while Nic Dowd replied for Vegas. The Golden Knights have made the playoffs every season except one since entering the NHL in 2017-18 and won the Stanley Cup in 2023. The series opens April 27 at 04:00 at the Delta Center.