Three November thoughts on the Vegas Golden Knights

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – NOVEMBER 13: Vegas Golden Knights and Chicago Blackhawks players stand at attention for the national anthem prior to their game at T-Mobile Arena on November 13, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/NHLI via Getty Images)

It would be an understatement to say that the month of November hasn’t been vintage for the Vegas Golden Knights so far.

With four straight losses and six defeats from their last seven, the Vegas Golden Knights are currently 9-8-3 on the year and are fifth in the Pacific Division.

They’ve blown a plethora of leads in games and their offense has been somewhat anemic as of late, with Mark Stone going five straight games without posting a single point.

The defense has been the biggest bugaboo for this team, though, and giving up a plethora of turnovers and odd-man rushes per game certainly hasn’t helped their cause.

Granted, there is still a lot of hockey to be played and there is no doubt that there is still plenty of talent on this roster, while they should have some cap flexibility to be able to make a move or two at the Trade Deadline.

However, there is no denying that the first month and a bit of the year has been a strange one for the Vegas Golden Knights and, as such, I have three thoughts in particular I want to share with you all…

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – OCTOBER 12: Johnny Gaudreau #13 of the Calgary Flames falls to the ice as he and Brayden McNabb #3 of the Vegas Golden Knights go after the puck in the third period of their game at T-Mobile Arena on October 12, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. McNabb received a two-minute minor penalty for tripping on the play. The Golden Knights defeated the Flames 6-2. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

1. Undisciplined Chaos

When delving into some of the more advanced stats throughout the NHL this year, it is interesting that the Vegas Golden Knights are currently ranked sixth in Penalties In Minutes Per Game with 10.2.

It isn’t surprising, though, because the eye test tells us that the Knights have been very undisciplined through the first chunk of this season and that has cost them at times.

The only saving grace for the Knights is the fact that they do boast the third best penalty kill in the National Hockey League (87.8), but you can’t keep on expecting your special teams to bail you out.

Interestingly, the Golden Knights only gave up an average of 7.1 PIM/G in 2018-19, and just 6.8 per game in their inaugural year.

So, this undisciplined play has only reared its head this season and it is hard to pinpoint exactly why the Vegas Golden Knights are taking so many penalties.

Brayden McNabb leads the way for the team in that category and the defenseman is ranked 12th in the entire NHL with 26 PIM.

He’s also a -1 with three points (one goal, two assists) through 20 games and his struggles this year can certainly be put down to the amount of penalties taken.

Overall, there is no easy answer as to why the Vegas Golden Knights are all of a sudden taking penalties like kids take Halloween candy, but we know they have to curb it back because their impressive penalty kill units aren’t always going to be there to save them.