Talk about a missed opportunity. The Vegas Golden Knights had the chance to gain some ground on the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday but instead put up a stinker.
With a chance to make up for lost time in the Pacific Division, the Vegas Golden Knights could have entered Thanksgiving week on an almighty high by beating the red hot Oilers.
However, rather than collect a notable scalp they instead racked up another underwhelming loss, and it was one that just hammered home how much work there is to do for this Golden Knights team.
Because, for all the talent that there is on this roster, it hasn’t quite clicked on the ice and they wouldn’t last long in the postseason playing at the level they are right now.
And Saturday’s matchup against the impressive Oilers provided a stark reality check of just where the Knights are at right now.
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They can’t be considered one of the best teams in the Pacific Division currently, and they certainly aren’t among the elite in the NHL.
Granted, we’re still only in November and championships aren’t won this early in the season, but they can be lost and most experts do consider Thanksgiving as the line of demarcation when it comes to knowing exactly who your team is.
And, sadly, the Vegas Golden Knights are a team with a lot of flaws right now.
They are struggling to put the puck in the net, they are guilty of playing sloppy defense and some real bad habits are starting to creep into their game.
What are those bad habits? Well, as we saw on Saturday, this team didn’t compete hard, they lost puck battles, they lost battles along the board and they were just out willed by the Edmonton Oilers.
And, say what you want about the Oilers and their lack of roster depth, they showed enough on Saturday night to make a case for why they are the real deal in the Pacific Division this year.
Because, let’s face it, as long as they have a few players chip in with secondary scoring they will be fine being carried by the superstar duo of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, who have combined for a staggering 95 points already this season.
They have also got solid goaltending this year and their defence which, on paper, doesn’t look the best unit, have collectively elevated their game.
And all of the above came together to produce a perfect storm of reasons as to why the Oilers absolutely dominated the Golden Knights.
They were faster, stronger, smarter with and without the puck, better and, crucially, they had that clinical touch to put the game away.
Edmonton, under experienced Head Coach Dave Tippett, is just a solid unit that play for each other and they then rely on McDavid and Draisital to produce the goods and come up clutch.
Vegas has that offensive firepower too, although not nearly in the same league as the Oilers’ big hitters, admittedly.
However, the likes of Mark Stone, William Karlsson, Max Pacioretty and Jonathan Marchessault are elite players in their own right and this Golden Knights roster is more than good enough to make a deep postseason run.
It is in my opinion, at least.
You need to get the little details right in order to be successful in the NHL, though, and the Vegas Golden Knights just aren’t doing that right now.
They were given a harsh reality check on Saturday by a team who rightly sit atop the Pacific Division, and the Edmonton Oilers just further exposed the flaws that exist on this Vegas team.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I still believe in this roster and there is still a hell of a lot of hockey to be played, so there’s plenty of time for the Knights to get their house in order and start playing like the team we all thought they were.
Of course, slumps and rough patches are to be expected, but what we have seen in recent games and more so on Saturday was a lack of compete and a lack of effort, coupled with a number of players not willing to get their noses dirty.
That simply won’t do and the Vegas Golden Knights need every single player ready to go to war and give it their all. That is how this team has been built and constructed, after all.
Overall, Saturday showed us that the Edmonton Oilers are just a better hockey team in every aspect right now, and the Vegas Golden Knights have a lot of work to do if they are to challenge for the Pacific Division.