The Vegas Golden Knights were skidding but righted the ship in their last two games before the 4 Nations Face-Off break. After going 3-8-3 in 14 games between January 9th and February 5th, the Golden Knights rattled off two consecutive wins over the New Jersey Devils and the Boston Bruins. And these weren’t fluke wins– they won by getting back to their game and playing their preferred style of hockey.
Of course, an injury during the 4 Nations Face-Off Tournament will complicate things.
Here are three predictions for how the rest of the season plays out.
Kelly McCrimmon pulls Off Another Big Trade
Earlier in the week, I wrote that I only expected the Golden Knights to target depth players at this year’s Trade Deadline. That was a reasonable, if somewhat basic, observation at the time. Now, they may not have a choice but to take a swing and try for a big-name defenseman
The Golden Knights announced today that Shea Theodore is expected to be out week-to-week after his injury during last night’s 4 Nations Face-Off game.
Losing Theodore for any amount of time could be devastating for the Golden Knights. Theodore is a guy who is second on the team in ice time per game. He’s third in scoring and quarterbacks the league’s 2nd ranked power play. He drives offense and has arguably been the team’s most consistent defenseman this season.
Out of my three predictions, this one is the biggest reach. The Golden Knights have garnered a reputation as a team that is always “going for it,” so the fact that they might want to go big-game hunting isn’t the risky part of my prediction.
What’s risky is that the Golden Knights simply don’t have many assets to leverage to pull off a major trade. Knowing General Manager Kelly McCrimmon, it feels unlikely that he’d let this issue go unaddressed, but he’ll have to get creative. The Golden Knights don’t have a first-round pick until 2027, and a big trade would likely result in them losing an attractive prospect– like Trevor Connelly, the 19th overall pick in last year’s draft.
But I’ve learned not to bet against Kelly McCrimmon regarding trades. I’d lose money every time.
Eichel Shatters Career-High Point Totals
Jack Eichel is on track for 28 goals and 102 points. If he keeps pace, he’ll tie his career high in goals and easily pass his career-high of 82 points.
I’ll take it a step further. Throughout his career, Eichel has shown the ability to step up when he’s needed most. He has 33 points in 29 career playoff games. He had eight assists in the Stanley Cup Final against the Florida Panthers in five games.
In Theodore’s absence, I think Eichel kicks it up a notch and finds a new gear. I’m going to say he ends the season with 35 goals and 110 points. Just a hunch.
The Golden Knights Still Make the Playoffs
This one is kind of obvious. The Western Conference is very, very weak right now. As devastating as Theodore’s loss is, I don’t see any of the fringe playoff teams playing well enough to climb the standings and knock the Golden Knights off.
The Golden Knights still have a 99.8% chance to make the postseason, per MoneyPuck. Even if Theodore misses the rest of the regular season, it would truly surprise me if they fell out of the playoff race. They have a record of 33-17-6 and a point percentage of .643, with 72 in 56 games. The current odd team out– the Calgary Flames– has 60 points in 55 games, a .545 points percentage. So, even if the Golden Knights stumble, it would take a lot to knock them out of the playoffs.
However, the Golden Knights may lose favorable matchups or home-ice advantage. The Edmonton Oilers can overtake them in the Pacific Division standings. If the Oilers win the Pacific Division, that almost certainly means that the Golden Knights will face the Los Angeles Kings in the first round of the playoffs. The Golden Knights and the Kings met in the postseason in 2018; the Golden Knights broke out the brooms for a series sweep.
We’re currently about nine weeks out from the postseason. I’m not a doctor and won’t speculate on the severity of Theodore’s injury beyond what we know– you know what they say about when you assume– but it’s hard to imagine he wouldn’t be ready to go come April at the latest.
Beyond that, who knows?
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