The Vegas Golden Knights know how to win big games. They did that two years ago and won the Stanley Cup in their sixth season. They came up short last year and ended up with a major disappointment.
Details for the Golden Knights were lacking, especially when they dropped a seven-game series to the Dallas Stars in the first round of the postseason. As painful as that loss was for head coach Bruce Cassidy & Co., it may serve as inspiration for this year’s team.
The Golden Knights will certainly be reminded of it when they get to the Stanley Cup playoffs in April, but it will also help throughout the regular season whenever the team makes unforced errors or the concentration level is not what it’s supposed to be.
When it comes to the makeup of the team, the Golden Knights have the talent, experience, motivation and know-how to push any of their opponents to the limit. Jack Eichel is the best player on the team and one of the game’s best clutch players. He has plenty of company with stars like Mark Stone, Ivan Barbashev and Shea Theodore.
It’s important for Cassidy and the rest of the team to know that as talented as Eichel is, he does not have to do everything himself.
Golden Knights have the offensive firepower to handle season-long challenges
When it comes to offense, the Golden Knights are gifted with versatility. They have the high skill level needed to make razor sharp passes in the offensive zone that lead to clear-cut scoring opportunities.
Passing often sets good teams apart from average ones and great teams from good ones. It is also an area that Eichel excels. He leads the Golden Knights in scoring with 9 goals and 30 assists through the team’s first 29 games, and he can direct pinpoint passes across ice that lead to scoring opportunities.
Those Eichel passes from distance would lead to turnovers from most players, but Eichel’s precision is elite. He can also make the shorter passes by delivering the puck in the perfect position for his teammates to get off quick and effective shots on goal.
The Golden Knights also fight for space down low and that allows the team to get scoring opportunities in the high-danger zones. Players like Barbashev, Stone, Pavel Dorofeyev, Tomas Hertl and Nicolas Roy will pay the price to gain inside ice against the toughest opponents.
Winning this battle in the toughest games will often determine the difference. It’s no about artistic passes or skating speed, but winning the battles for loose pucks with on-ice grit often makes the difference.
Vegas defense can hold its own
The same battle that Eichel, Stone and Dorofeyev can win in the offensive zone must be secured by Theodore, Brayden McNabb, Noah Hanifin, Alex Pietrangelo and Zach Whitecloud on the defensive end.
Cassidy and his assistant coaches do an outstanding job of preparing the Vegas blueliners to understand how opponents are going to attack and making sure players are positioned correctly. However, the talent and experience of the Golden Knights defensemen almost make this part of the job easy for the coaching staff.
Theodore is the team’s top offensive defenseman with 3 goals and 21 assists for 24 points. Pietrangelo also has a hard shot from the point and has solid offensive instincts. He has netted 2 goals and 13 assists to this point in the season.
The Golden Knights have the experience needed on the blue line to get the job done in most games, but perhaps this unit could use a player with a bit more speed. If the Golden Knights are going to add any particular aspect at the trade deadline, finding a swift skating blue liner would be a smart way to go.
Adin Hill stepping up in net for Golden Knights
Once the schedule reaches the last 20 games of the regular season and the playoffs follow, goaltending will almost certainly be the decisive factor most teams. That includes the Golden Knights, who have been getting some solid work from Adin Hill.
Hill has been on top of his game this year, recording a 13-4-2 record in his first 19 starts in net. He has a 2.59 goals against average and a .904 save percentage. He has already recorded 2 shutouts.
Ilya Samsonov is a solid No. 2 goaltender with a 6-3-1 record. He has been fairly average this year with a 3.16 GAA and an .896 save percentage. If he can pick up his play as the season progresses, Cassidy will have two dependable goaltenders in the season’s home stretch and the playoffs.
Golden Knights have the necessities to get back to the mountain top
The joy of winning the Stanley Cup stays with players for years. Gaining the championship two years ago over the Florida Panthers is something that a high percentage of the Vegas players have burned into their memories.
This team has the talent, experience and grit to make another long run, possibly all the way to Stanley Cup glory. The Golden Knights may need a bit more team speed, but that may be the only factor that is missing. This team is good enough to win a second Stanley Cup in three seasons.
