Vegas Golden Knights: Lehner heroics shines the light on biggest strength

You can’t win championships without elite goaltending and the Vegas Golden Knights have taken notice of that sentiment.

Already boasting a future Hall of Famer in Marc-Andre Fleury, the Vegas Golden Knights made an almighty splash at the Trade Deadline after pulling the trigger on a blockbuster move for Robin Lehner.

The Knights, seeking an opportunity to drastically improve what was already a strength, sent a 2020 second-round pick, goalie Malcolm Subban and prospect defenseman Slava Demin to the Chicago Blackhawks for Lehner.

Although Subban had shown some promise, it was clear that he hadn’t convinced the front office enough that he was the man to steady the ship should anything happen to Fleury.

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Instead, General Manager Kelly McCrimmon recognized that his team is built to win now so he pushed all of his chips into the middle of the table in order to acquire Lehner.

And, although a small sample size, McCrimmon must be beaming from ear to ear after seeing the early returns.

Because, not only has Lehner looked dominant in his first two starts for the Golden Knights, but the 28-year-old’s arrival in Sin City has also coincided with the return to form of Fleury.

Fleury has really reached his peak again in his last five or six starts, reminding everyone of his true greatness and why he is still very much the king.

And then there is Lehner, who is 2-0-0 in his first two starts with the Golden Knights, boasting a .967 Save Percentage and a 1.00 Goals Against Average.

Again, it is a small body of work to go on but it is still impressive nonetheless, and Lehner’s heroics against the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday night gave us a tantalizing taste of what is to come.

In Lehner, the Golden Knights now have one of the best backups in the entire NHL, a veteran goalie who is confident in his own ability while being able to track the puck incredibly well.

He fills the goal with his sturdy frame and, playing with ice in his veins, Lehner is built for postseason hockey.

Having Lehner will also allow Vegas Head Coach Peter DeBoer to ease Fleury’s workload down the stretch, thus allowing the star to recharge his batteries and be sharp for the playoffs.

Plus, the Golden Knights can now rest in the knowledge that, should anything happen to Fleury or if they need a spark, they can go to Lehner who will be able to handle the pressure that comes with postseason hockey.

Competition also brings the best out of players and, given that both Fleury and Lehner are born competitors, that should only yield positive results for the Golden Knights.

There is no doubt that Vegas is incredibly deep between the pipes now, and that will give them a huge advantage in the playoffs where games are tight and hotly-contested.

It is the little details and the fine margins that count in the postseason, and the Golden Knights will look to kill teams with elite goaltending coupled with an explosive top-six forward unit.

We saw on Tuesday that Robin Lehner already looks like a perfect fit for the Vegas Golden Knights, who have given themselves a hell of an edge heading into the most important chunk of the year.