It’s obvious by now that John Tortorella didn’t have enough time to put his own stamp on the Vegas Golden Knights.
He had no choice — or maybe he did, in hindsight — but to rely on the players to claw their way out of a hole they dug themselves three weeks ago.
The record books will read the Knights won the Pacific Division, and it took 95 points to get there after their 4-1 win over the Seattle Kraken at T-Mobile Arena on Wednesday.
Say what you will about the division in its entirety. The Knights, even taking until Game 82 to do it, did what they set out to do.
They get home-ice advantage for the first two rounds, starting with what should be an exciting first-round series against the Utah Mammoth.
“All I know, since I’ve been here, they have played to a level. and played it as a team consistently,” Tortorella said.
The Knights ended the regular season on a 7-0-1 run after Tortorella replaced Bruce Cassidy on March 29, and they’re heading into the playoffs on a 10-game point streak.
The plus side is the Knights are playing their best hockey heading into the playoffs. The other half of the coin is that kind of momentum doesn’t matter in the postseason.
Hence why it doesn’t matter that it took the Knights 95 points and Game 82 to wrap up the worst division in hockey this season.
The NHL’s playoff format makes it so the road to the Western Conference Final in the Pacific side of the bracket goes through Las Vegas.
“We were on top there for a while for a lot of the season,” defenseman Brayden McNabb said. “Then we’re in third, flirting with a wild card. We found our game at the right time and won the division. That’s what we wanted to do, and we did it.”
Tortorella didn’t come in with an X’s and O’s overhaul. He’s talked extensively about challenging the players’ minds more than anything.
It’s translated at both ends of the ice. The Knights have averaged 4.13 goals under and a league-best 1.88 against since Tortorella took over.
The offense has come alive. They’ve also gotten the goaltending they’ve needed with Carter Hart going 6-0 down the stretch and allowing 10 goals in those starts since returning from a lower-body injury.
“He’s been a backbone ever since he came back,” defenseman Shea Theodore said. “It’s obviously great to have confidence in him. It’s good to see him playing well.”
Wednesday wasn’t the easiest game. Seattle scored first, then pressured the Knights for half the game with their forecheck.
Tortorella said the fast Kraken were “quicker than us early on.” It took the Knights time to get one by Seattle rookie goalie Nikke Kokko.
The dam eventually broke with three goals in the third period.
“It’s a type of game that if you knew the result that you were going to win, you’d almost want to play one of those before playoffs,” Tortorella said. “You don’t like being in it when it’s going on, but give our guys credit. They stayed with it and just kept playing.”
The Knights are off Thursday before returning to practice Friday. Game 1 is likely on Sunday. There’s time between now and then to dissect the opponent.
But does Tortorella have any early thoughts on Utah?
“No,” he said.
And that’s how the press conference ended. Bring on playoff hockey.
Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.