Vegas Golden Knights: Three big roster decisions still to iron out
We are hurtling towards the regular season but the Vegas Golden Knights still has some work to do when it comes to fine-tuning their opening night roster.
October is nearly here and the Vegas Golden Knights have just three exhibition games left before they can close the book on the preseason and get ready for the eagerly anticipated regular season opener against the San Jose Sharks on Oct, 2.
However, this last slate of exhibition games will need to be taken seriously by the Golden Knights because they still have a handful of key decisions to make when it comes to their opening night roster.
We have done deep dive after deep dive on the intense battle for the last open roster spot on the blueline, while there is now an ongoing tussle for the left wing role on the third line. Those two roster headaches will go right down to the wire, but there is also one other conundrum that will need to be resolved in the coming days.
And that is the one we are going to start with as we go through the three biggest roster decisions that still need to be ironed out by the Vegas Golden Knights before the regular season gets underway next week…
1. Change of heart after all
What are we on about? Well let us explain. Earlier in the off-season Vegas Head Coach Gerard Gallant confirmed that he won’t be tinkering with his top six forward unit, which packs enough firepower to sink a small fleet of battleships.
Why fix what isn’t broken, after all.
Reilly Smith, William Karlsson and Jonathan Marchessault are an established line and they are a proven commodity having combined for an incredible 381 regular season points over the course of the last two years.
All three players endured dips in production from an individual standpoint in 2018-19, but they are in line to all bounce back this year given that they won’t have to carry all of the burden when it comes to producing offense.
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That’s because the Golden Knights will be treated to a full year of Max Pacioretty, Paul Stastny and Mark Stone, and that trio could well form Vegas’ top line in 2019-20. They combined for 31 points (13 goals, 18 assists) in seven postseason contests and that is just a taster of what is to come given their star power.
However, is Gallant undergoing a change of heart already?
Maybe we’re reading too much into it but William Karlsson will play on a top line with Mark Stone and Jonathan Marchessault against the Colorado Avalanche tonight, reuniting the latter two who tore it up for Team Canada at the IIHF World Championships earlier in the summer.
Of course, Gallant has tinkered with his lines throughout the preseason but he could be tempted to restructure his top two lines should Karlsson, Marchessault and Stone tear it up tonight against the Avs.
Either way, the Golden Knights are absolutely stacked at the top end of their lineup and having options when it comes to rolling out different variations of that top six could be a secret weapon this year.
2. The Blueline
This has been much discussed throughout Training Camp and we should be a lot clearer in the coming days as to which rookie has nailed down that final roster spot on the blueline for 2019-20.
It has been a fascinating battle and Dylan Coghlan appears to be leading the pack at the moment after emerging as a bona fide talent in the preseason. He brings plenty of offensive upside to the table, not to mention packing one hell of a thunderous slapshot.
It appears to be Coghlan’s job to lose at this stage but his work isn’t done yet with Nic Hague breathing right down his neck. Hague is more of a complete package at the moment given his imposing physical presence (6’6″ & 214 lbs), his outstanding reach, sick stickhandling skills and ability to jump up in the play.
Jimmy Schuldt, Zach Whitecloud and Jake Bischoff have all had their moments in the exhibition games they have played in so far, but it is fair to suggest that they are someway behind both Coghlan and Hague heading into the final stretch of the preseason.
However, all five will get a chance to slug it out tonight when they play against the Colorado Avalanche, and it could be their final chance to stake their respective claims given that the Golden Knights intend to use the final two preseason games as a dress rehearsal for the regular season.
Coghlan appears to be the frontrunner right now but we could be discussing a new leading contender come Thursday morning given how quickly things change in hockey.
3. Who will fill the third line hole?
Again, this has been a really entertaining battle to watch play out over the last couple of weeks and it could reach its peak tonight when the Colorado Avalanche come to town (7:00 p.m. PT).
Brandon Pirri looked to be the favorite to complete the makeup of the third line alongside Cody Eakin and Alex Tuch heading into Training Camp, and he hasn’t done anything in the preseason to change that.
In-fact, he’s been as good as you could have hoped with a couple of goals and some eye-catching plays, while bringing a high compete level to the table.
Pirri has had some competition with Valentin Zykov and Tomas Nosek both stepping up to the plate in exhibition games, with the former reporting to Camp leaner, meaner and with a brand new attitude.
All of the hard work in Vegas throughout the off-season has paid off with Zykov appearing almost reborn as a player, and he has recorded two goals and an assist for three points in the exhibition games he’s played in so far.
However, all of that hard work put in by Pirri, Zykov and Nosek may be for nothing with young rookie phenom Cody Glass having exploded onto the scene and proving that he’s tailor made for the NHL.
Glass has been sensational for the Golden Knights throughout Training Camp and the preseason, tallying three assists and showcasing his elite playmaking ability.
Able to read the open ice, create a play out of nothing and able to match the speed, physicality and intensity of the NHL, Glass has wowed fans, his teammates, the coaching staff and the front office and there is no doubt that he’s primed and ready to take the NHL by storm.
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Plus, he has proven he is comfortable playing on the wing and that could be the deciding factor in the franchise deciding to name him on the opening night roster.
We are huge fans of Glass so call us biased but it appears a lock that he should be on this team to start 2019-20, but the final three preseason games could have a vital role in making that concrete.