Since the beginning of the season, the Vegas Golden Knights have somehow found a way to drawn the rotten end of the bargain. When it comes to playing in a physical sport such as hockey, injuries are just part of the game. However, looking back to some of the Golden Knights’ previous seasons, injuries have never plagued their team this bad.
Looking at what some of those injuries did to their roster, well it pretty much made the Vegas Golden Knights the Henderson Silver Knights. Over the course of about a month and a half, the Knights had to call up multiple prospects. The Knights awarded opportunities to: Pavel Dorofeyev, Jack Dugan, Kaedan Korczak, Jake Leschyshyn, Jonas Rondbjerg, Daniil Miromanov, Paul Cotter, and Ben Jones.
In the absence of Mark Stone, Max Pacioretty, Alec Martinez, and William Karlsson, the Knights had to find a way to persevere. When you have a lineup as talented as the Knights do, no one is going to feel sorry because you lost a couple players. Especially not in a game as physical as hockey. That’s not how anyone is wired.
After a period of time went by that Vegas Golden Knights continued to pull from their prospect pool, they realized they can’t keep doing that. The whole point of having a Affiliate is to help your prospects grow and develop as a player before they take on some of the toughest teams, and players, in the world. That’s when the started making a couple moves.
They knew that it was going to be awhile before this team really started to find their way back to healthy. So after debating of the best course of action, McCrimmon decided that he had to find a way to load up for their future. That’s when they traded for superstar center, Jack Eichel.
In the trade that led to them acquiring Jack Eichel, they gave up top prospects: Alex Tuch, and Peyton Krebs. Along with them giving up those two players, they also gave up their first-rounder this year. However, making trades like that aren’t uncommon to the Knights. Along with making the trade to acquire Eichel, they also have made trades to acquire: Mark Stone, Max Pacioretty, Evgenii Dadonov, and Nolan Patrick.
The mindset that this team is a winning organization keeps the coaches and front office on their toes. So with that being said, when a top player requests a trade or gets put on the trade block, the Knights are always on their phone trying to make something happen. There is one name in particular that fits the criteria and could be a good trade option for the Vegas Golden Knights: Jake DeBrusk.
Why the Vegas Golden Knights Should Target Jake DeBrusk
The Vegas Golden Knights have been known as a very talented team since coming into the league in 2017. Since that point, the Knights have had multiple playoff appearances and have actually made it to the Stanley Cup in their first season. But what you don’t know is that it’s not by accident.
There are two main reasons behind the Vegas Golden Knights early success. The first reason is that the Knights have had the mindset of winning and it’s been that way since the expansion draft. The second reason is that the Knights have kept coaches and front office personnel that have the same morals and goals. However, in that comes consequences.
When you have teams that are driven by their competitive nature, and their winning mentality, they can often come with some consequences. For example, the Vegas Golden Knights have yet to keep any of their first-round picks since the 2017 entry draft. But, that’s where their willingness to make a team full of winners comes into play.
Their first-round picks, although it sucks not to have youth on their roster, has been used to acquire star players. They traded Nick Suzuki to the Canadiens in order to get Max Pacioretty. The Knights have also acquired: Mark Stone, Jack Eichel, Evgenii Dadonov, and Nolan Patrick. So with that, The Vegas Golden Knights could look to keep the streak going in order to acquire former first-round pick: Jake DeBrusk.
The Boson Bruins forward, has been one of the more high end prospects since coming into the league. However, after having a pretty good start to his career, his trajectory has actually gone the wrong way.
During the three seasons that he’s played in, DeBrusk has appeared in 203 games, in which he scored 62 goals and 58 assists for a total of 120 points. Looking at the last two seasons, he’s played in 66 games in which he’s scored 10 goals and 12 assists for 22 points. As you can see, that is not quite the trajectory you want to have as a player and definitely not what you like to see as a coach. So with that being said, that’s where the Knights should come in.
The Vegas Golden Knights have helped turn Chandler Stephenson, William Karlsson’s career around for the better.
Chandler Stephenson had a rough start with the Washington Capitals, and found himself in a less than convenient situation. Stephenson’s speed made him a huge asset to the Capitals offense but the lack of production was a liability. After being traded for by the Vegas Golden Knights, he’s finally found his stride with the Knights.
Similarly, William Karlsson was a former Columbus Blue Jacket that never quite lived up to the expectations that were set. The speed of Karlsson made him a huge asset to the Blue Jackets but his offensive production just wasn’t quite there. In the lack of his production the Blue Jackets left him unprotected in the expansion draft and the Knights were able to swoop in and get themselves a top six center.
In Conclusion, the Vegas Golden Knights have to find a way to continue adding some youth on their roster, but more importantly need to increase their NHL caliber depth. DeBrusk fits the category of needing a change of scenery and the Knights can give him that. Additionally, the Knights are in need to continue adding NHL caliber depth to their roster.
Jake DeBrusk fits both categories that the Vegas Golden Knights are looking for and could be a great pickup for the Knights. The only drawback to making this move in the ability to have the Bruins take on cap in the trade. If they can make that work, this would be a terrific get for the Knights.