Vegas Golden Knights: Top 3 reasons to be excited for 2019-20
It is taking a while but we are slowly inching closer towards the return of hockey and there is plenty to be excited about if you are a Vegas Golden Knights fan.
As great as summer is when it comes to glorious sunshine and endless amounts of Baseball, and given that I am a New York Mets fan the last few weeks have been ‘Amazin’ indeed, there is literally nothing better than hockey season and watching the Vegas Golden Knights do their thing.
Following what has been a long off-season, the Golden Knights are now gearing up for training camp and the first preseason game against the Arizona Coyotes at T-Mobile Arena is only 17 days away, which is very exciting indeed.
And we couldn’t have been treated to a better start to the regular season, either, with the Knights opening up 2019-20 with a double-header against the San Jose Sharks, who they have developed one hell of a tasty rivalry with over the last two years.
There will of course be added spice when the two teams do battle at T-Mobile Arena on Oct, 2 given what happened in Game 7 of the First Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs last year. We don’t need to rehash what happened but it is fair to say that there will be one hell of an edge to Vegas’ home opener.
Round two will take place in San Jose the following night and those opening two games will carry added importance given that they are both Pacific Division matchups and the Knights and the Sharks should be on a collision course all year long for the divisional title.
Aside from that, there are a plethora of other reasons to get excited for the return of Vegas Golden Knights hockey. William Karlsson is back and locked down for the long-term after signing an eight-year, $47,200,000 contract in the offseason, we will have a full season of peak Mark Stone, Marc-Andre Fleury is still vintage Marc-Andre Fleury, Cody Glass could make the leap to the majors and Shea Theodore looks set to continue his rise to superstardom in the NHL.
Basically, it is a good time to be a Vegas Golden Knights fan right now and we are going to map out three reasons in-depth as to why you should be extremely excited for 2019-20…
This team is built to win now
Despite a shaky offseason that saw Pierre-Edouard Bellemare and Ryan Carpenter depart for pastures new in free agency, coupled with the trades that sent Erik Haula, Colin Miller and Nikita Gusev to the Carolina Hurricanes, Buffalo Sabres and New Jersey Devils respectively, this is still a stacked roster.
Yes, letting go of Gusev could be a huge mistake given that he could easily morph into a 60-point scorer for the Devils this year, but on the flip side of that he could also just as easily become a flop and, as a result, the Golden Knights were not willing to take the risk when it came to shedding more depth in order to sign the KHL legend to a deal.
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Having already lost Bellemare, Carpenter, Haula and Miller, the Vegas front office were loathe to weaken the core of their roster further, and you can’t blame them for that. Plus, the biggest priority bar none heading into the off-season was always to lock William Karlsson down to a long-term deal and that was achieved.
Whether you are happy or not with the way the Golden Knights navigated the off-season, the fact remains that the Stanley Cup window is still wide open for a team that is loaded with talent in both the offensive zone and on the blueline.
For starters, they have one of the most formidable top six units in the entire NHL with enough firepower to sink a small fleet of battleships. The top line of Reilly Smith, William Karlsson and Jonathan Marchessault, which could become the second line in 2019-20, have combined for a staggering 381 points over the last two years, in addition to 75 points in the playoffs.
Then you have the fact that we will be treated to a full year of Max Pacioretty, Paul Stastny and Mark Stone. The trio were put together on the second line for the latter stages of 2018-19 and it paid off handsomely, with the trio combining for 27 points in 11 games before going on an absolute tear in the postseason after amassing 31 points (13 goals, 18 assists) in seven games against the San Jose Sharks.
The blueline is also full of talent with Shea Theodore and Nate Schmidt leading the way, while both Brayden McNabb and Jon Merrill progressed immensely last year and they should take another step forward in 2019-20. Chuck in the mixing pot the fact that a high-end rookie will complete the blueline, then you have all the ingredients for the Knights to continue to be a solid defensive unit after letting in an average of just 2.78 goals per game last year.
And let’s not forget Marc-Andre Fleury who showed in 2018-19 that he isn’t planning on slowing down any time just yet. He was at the peak of his powers at times last year, finishing the regular season with a 2.51 Goals Against Average, a .913 Save Percentage and eight shutouts.
Fleury’s eight shutouts ranked second in the NHL behind Sergei Bobrovsky‘s nine for the Columbus Blue Jackets, and the Golden Knights will need more of the same from their future Hall of Famer if they are to again harbor aspirations of embarking on a deep postseason run.
This roster oozes talent in every department and they have all the tools required to not only dominate the regular season in 2019-20, but to also go all the way in the postseason and bring a Stanley Cup back to Sin City.
A full season of Mark Stone
Mark Stone was a revelation for the Vegas Golden Knights after being acquired at the Trade Deadline from the Ottawa Senators. The elite forward posted five goals and six assists for 11 points in 18 regular season games down the stretch, while he was even better in the postseason with 12 points (six goals, six assists) in seven playoff contests.
He finished 2018-19 with 73 points (33 goals, 40 assists) overall in 77 games for both the Senators and the Knights, while he led the entire NHL in takeaways with 122 which led to the right wing finishing second in voting for the Selke Trophy, awarded annually to the NHL forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game.
The good news for the Golden Knights is that Stone is locked down for eight more years in Sin City, and he is at the height of his prime right now which means that he should be even better for Vegas in 2019-20. That is grim news for the remainder of the NHL.
And what is worse for the rest of the league is the fact that Stone developed a lethal chemistry with Max Pacioretty and Paul Stastny down the stretch last year and in the postseason. That could easily become the top line for the Knights this year but, if not, then it will arguably be the best second line in the NHL.
They combined for 27 points in 11 games in the regular season before elevating their play to a whole new level in the playoffs, teaming up for 31 points in seven tilts against the Sharks. Furthermore, Pacioretty led the NHL with 4.82 points per 60 minutes in the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2018-19, Stone was second with 4.77 points per 60, and Stastny was ninth with 3.40.
That trio together for a whole season could pay dividends for the Golden Knights not just during the regular season, but in the postseason when it really counts and that extra income of firepower could prove to be the final piece of the puzzle in terms of securing the greatest prize in all of sports.
One thing we are sure about though is that a full season of watching Mark Stone do his thing and absolutely thrive in both zones, score and create goals for fun and come up clutch in key moments is going to be a hell of a lot of fun to watch.
Studs ready to make the leap
We all know building through the draft is the key to success in any sport, let alone hockey, and if you can unearth a generational talent then that can be enough to change the whole outlook for your franchise.
The Vegas Golden Knights have done a superb job of drafting since entering the NHL in 2017, and that hard work could start to pay dividends this year. For starters, Cody Glass looks ready to make the leap to the majors and the high-end two-way center will have a chance to win a roster spot on opening night in training camp.
Glass looks well equipped to take the NHL by storm and eventually morph into a top six elite forward in the big leagues, and he’s without doubt the most exciting talent currently within the Vegas farm system. He’s dominated at every level he’s played at and don’t be surprised if he does the same in the NHL.
In addition to Glass, five rookie defensemen will be given the chance to slug it out for the final roster spot on the blueline and it looks set to be a fascinating battle throughout training camp. Jimmy Schuldt (if he eventually re-signs), Nic Hague, Dylan Coghlan, Jake Bischoff and Zach Whitecloud will all enter training camp knowing what they have to do in order to come out on top.
Schuldt showed in a very small sample size – one game – last year the talent he has at his disposal, while Hague boasts all the attributes required to morph into a high-end and dominant top-four defenseman in the NHL.
Next. 3 Knights who need a big preseason. dark
Whatever happens, it is exciting to see so much young talent ready to crack the roster for the Golden Knights and there are more prospects on the way, with the likes of Peyton Krebs and Pavel Dorofeyev both having high ceilings but still a couple of years away.
Those are just three reasons we are excited for the 2019-20 NHL season but we want to know what you are most excited about! Let us know either via Twitter or in the comments section below.