It’s safe to say the Vegas Golden Knights have exceeded all expectations in their inaugural season. With their 3-0 victory over the Sharks on Sunday, they have now advanced to the Western Conference Finals.
It’s also safe to say that none of the previous nine NHL expansion teams achieved anything relatively close to the success that the Golden Knights have. Here’s how each team that debuted since 1990 in the NHL fared in their debut season.
Columbus Blue Jackets
- 2000-01 (28-39-9-6, 71 pts., 19 pts. behind eighth seed)
The Blue Jackets had somewhat of a veteran-laden team as 29-year-old left wing Geoff Sanderson led the team with 56 points and 34-year-old Ron Tugnutt was the team’s main goalie.
The team actually finished with less total points the following three seasons, and it took them until their eighth season to make the postseason.
Minnesota Wild
- 2000-01 (25-39-13-5, 68 pts., 22 pts. behind eighth seed)
It took the Wild just their third season to have what is still their furthest postseason run to date as they reached the conference finals. They struggled to score in their inaugural season though as their 168 goals were last in the NHL. Right wing Scott Pellerin led the team with just 39 points while they received solid goaltending from Manny Fernandez who ended with a 2.24 GAA and .920 save percentage.
Atlanta Thrashers
- 1999-00 (14-57-7-4, 39 pts., 46 pts. behind eighth seed)
The Thrashers lasted 11 seasons before moving to Winnipeg and becoming the Jets.
Their only postseason trip in Atlanta was during the 2006-07 season. They weren’t very competitive in their inaugural season giving up somewhat close to nearly twice as many goals (313) as goals scored (170). Left wing Andrew Brunette was their leading scorer with 50 points while Damian Rhodes and Norm Maracle shared the main goaltending duties.
Nashville Predators
- 1998-99 (28-47-7, 63 pts., 15 pts. behind eighth seed)
It took Nashville six years to reach the playoffs, but they have mostly been a mainstay since. They had the worst record in the Western Conference during their inaugural season. They were led in scoring by center Cliff Ronning’s 62 points and their main goalie during the year was Mike Dunham.
Florida Panthers
- 1993-94 (33-34-17, 83 pts., 1 pt. behind eighth seed)
The Panthers nearly finished with a .500 record and were just a point behind the eighth-seeded Islanders during their inaugural season. They were able to taste postseason in their third year. Their leading scorer in 1993-94 was right wing Scott Mellenby with 60 points and veteran John Vanbiesbrouck was their main goalie finishing with a strong .924 save percentage.
Mighty Ducks of Anaheim
- 1993-94 (33-46-5, 71 pts., 11 pts. behind eighth seed)
While the Mighty Ducks scored the least goals in the Western Conference in 1993-94, they also allowed the third-least. They were led by right-wing Terry Yake’s 52 points and Guy Hebert stayed in goal most often.
They made the playoffs in their fourth season.
Tampa Bay Lightning
- 1992-93 (23-54-7, 53 pts., 32 pts. behind eighth seed)
Tampa Bay was able to make the playoffs in their fourth year. During their inaugural season, they were led by center Brian Bradley’s 86 points while Pat Jablonski and Wendell Young did the bulk of the goaltending.
Ottawa Senators
- 1992-93 (10-70-4, 24 pts., 62 pts. behind eighth seed)
To say the Senators weren’t very competitive during their inaugural season would be an understatement. They were outscored by more than two goals a game on average. They were led in scoring with 63 points by defensemen Norm MacIver, and they used Peter Sidorkiewicz most often in goal. They first reached the postseason in their fifth season, the first of a streak of 11 straight years of playoff appearances.
San Jose Sharks
- 1991-92 (17-58-5, 39 pts., 31 pts. behind eighth seed)
The Sharks actually finished worse in their second year with just 24 points but made the playoffs in their third season. Their leading scorer in 1991-92 was Pat Fallon with 59 points, and Jeff Hackett was their primary goaltender. Their 219 goals in their inaugural season were 15 less than any other team.
