Vegas Golden Knights: Theodore riding rapid trajectory towards the very top

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Shea Theodore of the Vegas Golden Knights follows play against the Washington Capitals at Capital One Arena on November 09, 2019. /

Shea Theodore took a giant leap in 2019-20 and the defenseman is morphing into an elite stud for the Vegas Golden Knights.

While the final fate of this season is still very much in doubt, what isn’t in doubt is the fact that the Vegas Golden Knights have struck gold with Theodore.

Excuse the pun.

Looking to construct a blueline prior to their inaugural year, the Golden Knights saw plenty of untapped potential in Theodore and took full advantage of the Anaheim Ducks leaving their asset unprotected at the 2017 NHL Expansion Draft.

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And the Ducks’ loss has certainly been Vegas’ gain.

While it took some time for Theodore to make his mark on the blueline for the Golden Knights, posting 29 points (six goals, 23 points) in 61 games in 2017-18, the defenseman elevated his game the following year with 12 goals and 25 assists for 37 points in 79 games.

However, it was this year that the 24-year-old really took his game to a whole different level for Vegas.

Despite missing some of Training Camp and preseason after undergoing surgery following a huge scare with Testicular Cancer, Theodore began the regular season strong with five points (one goal, four assists) in the opening six games.

And Theodore never looked back from that point on, evolving into one of the finest young two-way defensemen in the NHL.

This was a career-year for Theodore and, while he may not get the opportunity to put a bow on it, it will still be seen as the official starting point of a career that has no ceiling.

That in itself is incredibly exciting.

The more you dig into the numbers the more impressive Theodore’s year in 2019-20 becomes, and we’re going to delve into his season before looking at what could be next…

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