At the time of writing, the Seattle Kraken are two wins away from the Western Conference Finals in just their second season of existence. In the playoffs for the first time, the Kraken already discarded the Colorado Avalanche, the reigning Stanley Cup carriers and a favorite to do it again before Seattle revealed alternate plans. The sophomore franchise is riding a wave akin to what the hockey world witnessed five years ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In June 2016, the NHL awarded Nevada\u2019s nocturnal neighborhood with an expansion franchise, setting off a course of events that concluded with the Vegas Golden Knights coming three wins away from a Stanley Cup championship almost exactly two years later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the 2017-18 season, the Golden Knights experienced the greatest introductory campaign of any North American professional sports expansion franchise ever<\/a>, let alone in NHL history. They became the first NHL expansion team to notch at least 34 wins or 84 points in their inaugural regular season, ultimately destroying both marks with 51 victories and 109 points as the Golden Knights comfortably collected the Pacific Division crown, doing what hadn\u2019t been done since the New York Rangers won their division as debutants in 1926-27.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And that was all before the playoffs. A first-round sweep, second-round success, and five-game feat in the Western Conference Finals had the Golden Knights playing in the holiest of holies less than a calendar year after the first NHL puck drop on The Strip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n