5 storylines to follow in Golden Knights-Jets series

That’s how left wing Brett Howden described this season for the Golden Knights, one in which they won the Pacific Division and claimed the top seed in the Western Conference while fighting through a storm of adversity.

It was an impressive achievement. But it won’t be remembered as fondly if the team can’t capitalize in the playoffs.

The Knights’ strong closing stretch — they finished 16-3-3 in their final 22 games while facing 13 playoff teams — earned them a first-round series against the Winnipeg Jets that begins Tuesday at T-Mobile Arena. The Jets went 5-2 down the stretch to earn the West’s second wild card.

It should be an intriguing matchup between two teams that couldn’t coast to the finish line. The Knights have plenty of reason to be confident after sweeping the season series 3-0-0 and showing a tremendous amount of resiliency all season.

That doesn’t mean Winnipeg won’t provide a test. Here are five storylines to follow in the series:

1. Can Knights’ close-game magic continue?

For all their accomplishments, the Knights were not a dominant team statistically.

They scored the 14th-most goals in the NHL and allowed the 11th-fewest. They ranked 18th on the power play and 19th on the penalty kill. What made them special was their ability to keep games close and find ways to win.

The Knights played the second-most one-goal games (42) and were tied with the league lead with 25 one-goal wins. They also had the most third-period comebacks (11) and were tied for the third-best winning percentage when leading after two periods (.919).

The Knights will need to show they can maintain that success throughout tense playoff games. They believe they can because of their experience, chemistry and depth.

“We’ve got four lines that can go out there at any time and play in any scenario,” defenseman Zach Whitecloud said. “Obviously, some pairs of D that can go out there in different situations. We all trust each other to get the job done.”

2. Will special teams problems show up?

Two of the 16 playoff teams finished below average on both special teams units: the Seattle Kraken and the Knights.

It’s a concern that has popped up in the playoffs before. The Knights were 0-for-15 on the power play in their semifinal loss to the Montreal Canadiens in 2021.

Whether the Jets can take advantage is a different story. Winnipeg finished 23rd on the power play and ranked 30th after the All-Star break.

Coach Bruce Cassidy thinks the Knights showed signs of life on special teams down the stretch. The power play was good at entering the zone and started executing better within it but lacked finish. The penalty kill started to be more aggressive once players got comfortable with the setup. Still, both units will need better results.

“We’ve gotten this far without excellent special teams, but at some point they need to be better if we’re going to expect to keep advancing,” Cassidy said.

3. Will Jets’ stars be grounded?

One of the Knights’ main priorities in the series? Quieting Kyle Connor.

The Winnipeg left wing has loved this matchup throughout his career. Connor has 10 goals and 21 points in 14 regular-season meetings with the Knights, and a goal and two points in five playoff games.

The Jets also have other high-end forwards, such as center/right wing Mark Scheifele (42 goals, 68 points), center Pierre-Luc Dubois (63 points), right wing Blake Wheeler (55 points) and left wing Nikolaj Ehlers (38 points in 45 games). They all can do damage in transition, often with defensemen Josh Morrissey, Neal Pionk and former Knight Nate Schmidt jumping into the play.

When they’re on their game, the Knights defend those rush opportunities as well as any other team. If they continue to do so, they have a good chance of limiting the Jets’ offense.

“If you give them opportunities, they’re going to take it, “center William Karlsson said. “We’ve got to be on top of that and try to take away their time and space as much as possible.”

4. Does Bowness repeat his defensive success?

Winnipeg first-year coach Rick Bowness knows how to beat the Knights.

Bowness was behind the bench for Dallas’ 4-1 series win over the Knights in the Western Conference Final in 2020. The Stars gave up only eight goals, including two or fewer in four of the five games.

The 68-year-old’s defensive structure long has been a hallmark of his teams. Dallas was 10th in the NHL in goals allowed per game during Bowness’ 2½ seasons. The Jets ranked 10th this season and gave up 29 fewer goals than in 2021-22.

Whether that means Winnipeg is set up for similar playoff success remains to be seen. The Knights are far different from that 2020 team, when they didn’t have center Jack Eichel, defenseman Alex Pietrangelo and plenty of other significant contributors to this season’s club.

5. Who stays healthier?

Both teams are in reasonable shape.

Captain Mark Stone and Whitecloud were full participants in the Knights’ Saturday and Sunday practices, increasing the likelihood they could appear in Game 1. The only players not skating with the team who played this season are left wing William Carrier and goaltender Logan Thompson.

The Jets rested several players in their final game to ensure they were healthy for the postseason but still could be without Ehlers and fourth-line center Kevin Stenlund. Bowness said both were “day to day” after not practicing Sunday, though Ehlers skated on his own and said Saturday he was “good to go.”

Winnipeg will start the series without rookie center Cole Perfetti. The 21-year-old, who has 30 points in 51 games, was declared out for at least eight weeks after suffering an upper-body injury Feb. 24.

Contact Ben Gotz at bgotz@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BenSGotz on Twitter.