We all face the challenge of finding the right gift for that person who seems to have everything during the holiday season. In NHL terms, that’s the Vegas Golden Knights.
The Golden Knights are firmly atop the Western Conference standings while looking poised to defend their Stanley Cup title. They boast a dynamic offense, a reliable, veteran-laden blue line, and some steady netminding from a young duo that includes potential Vezina candidate Adin Hill. To top it all off, they already had one of their Christmas wishes answered with the news of a significant cap increase projected for next season.
At this time of year, however, no team is ever without room for improvement. While the other 31 NHL clubs may not be in a particularly giving mood towards the Golden Knights, here is their wish list for Santa this holiday season:
A Healthy Starting Goalie
Last season, Logan Thompson took the reins in Vegas’ crease, even earning an All-Star nod, but spent much of the second half sidelined by a lower-body injury. We’re months from the All-Star break and yet the Golden Knights are probably feeling some déjà vu.
New starter Adin Hill (10-2-2, 1.93 goals-against average, .933% save percentage) was off to an All-Star worthy start, but his participation in the game has now been put in jeopardy because of injuries. He had already missed seven games with a lower-body injury when, in his first game back on Sunday, he lasted just six minutes before he was forced to exit the contest.
It’s unclear what this means for Hill or the Golden Knights, but losing the starting goalie has become an all too common trend for the organization. Last season ended pretty well, but only after a goalie carousel that resulted in an endless spate of injuries, and this doesn’t include Vegas’ highest-paid netminder, the long-forgotten Robin Lehner, whose last game action was on April 20, 2022. Let’s hope this troublesome pattern stops and a healthy Hill quickly returns between the pipes.
More Production from Barbashev and Stephenson
In some cases, Santa already seems to be working his Christmas magic, like with Ivan Barbashev and Chandler Stephenson.
We’ve spent some time early this season highlighting the struggles of both top-six forwards, but there are already indications that both the newly re-signed Barbashev and the pending unrestricted free agent Stephenson are on the right track. Barbashev now has 10 points over his past nine games, while Stephenson has seven points in six games to snap a six-game pointless streak.
Granted, this would probably be more of a luxury gift from Santa than a true need. After all, the Golden Knights still rank ninth in the league in goals per game, even with both forwards underperforming. That being said, it’s no coincidence that the team has played better when Barbashev and Stephenson score. Over the past 15 games, the club is 7-1 when Barbashev records a point and 1-2-4 when he doesn’t. Similarly, the last 17 games have seen them boast a 7-0 record when Stephenson hits the scoresheet and a 2-4-4 mark when he doesn’t.
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Breathing Room in the Pacific Division
While the Golden Knights are well positioned to defend – at the very least – their Pacific Division crown, hoping for a comfortable path to a second straight title might be asking too much.
As it stands, the club holds a three-point lead over the Vancouver Canucks and a nine-point lead over the Los Angeles Kings, albeit the Kings hold a whopping five games in hand. Also worth keeping an eye on is the Edmonton Oilers, who responded to a disastrous start by reeling off eight straight wins before hitting a recent two-game stumbling block.
Every team would love to comfortably stroll into the postseason, but perhaps none more so than the Golden Knights. No group would benefit more from being able to take their foot off the gas and rest players than the one that endured 22 playoff games en route to the Cup last spring and boasts one of the oldest rosters. However, with the Canucks, Kings, and Oilers still gunning for the top spot, this wish might require some serious Christmas magic.
The Golden Knights’ wish list isn’t as long as other teams, and that in itself is worthy of gratitude and appreciation. The team looks pretty good right now, but a healthy Hill, improvements from Barbashev and Stephenson, and a chance to ease into the playoffs would be pretty nice. Happy holidays!
