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Vegas Golden Knights Forward Jonathan Marchessault 2016-17 Year in Review

By Richard Cardinale

LAS VEGAS, NV - JUNE 21: Jonathan Marchessault is selected by the Las Vegas Golden Knights during the 2017 NHL Awards and Expansion Draft at T-Mobile Arena on June 21, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV - JUNE 21: Jonathan Marchessault is selected by the Las Vegas Golden Knights during the 2017 NHL Awards and Expansion Draft at T-Mobile Arena on June 21, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /
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Vegas Golden Knights fans hope Jonathan Marchessault can continue his scoring ways.

Things are starting to slow down for the Vegas Golden Knights again. But the same can also be said about the other 30 NHL franchises. The expansion, entry drafts and development camps have officially come and gone.

There’s always free agency, but I wouldn’t expect General Manager George McPhee to go out of his way for the free agents that are out there. McPhee put together the best roster possible while stockpiling draft picks. In the long run. We’ll be thanking McPhee for all the high picks that he’s accumulated.

McPhee chose some decent players at the expansion draft including goal scorer Jonathan Marchessault. McPhee made a great selection here given the fact that Head Coach Gerard Gallant coached Marchessault for a short stint. Marchessault put together a breakout campaign in 2016-17 for the Florida Panthers.

The 26-year old recorded 30 goals, 21 assists, and 51 points in 75 games played in 2016-17. We also have to keep in mind in the previous two seasons combined Marchessault only scored eight goals and 11 assists in 47 games. I expect Marchessault to have a drop off in 2017-18 for a couple of reasons.

One because he’ll be one of the Golden Knights primary goal scoring weapons and he’ll have the top defensive pairings around the league shutting him down. Another way I see Marchessault’s production going down is not having top quality linemates as he did in Florida. But there’s a lot to be positive about when it comes to the Cap-Rouge, Quebec native.

Marchessault brings versatility as he’s used at both center and wing positions. Obviously, he’s got a good shot, but he also gets to the dirty areas for scoring opportunities. While he is only 5’9 and weighs 174 lbs, he tries hard in every situation including even strength and special teams.

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Will Marchessault score 30 goals again next year? Probably not, but someone has to put up big numbers. It’s fair to say Marchessault can rack up 20-25 goals and lead the Vegas Golden Knights in scoring. But whether he does or not, Golden Knights fans will become attached to the way Marchessault plays the game of hockey.

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