The Vegas Golden Knights roster is compiled of top tier talent, but it doesn’t come cheap. The Knights have always been a trigger happy team and they are fearless when it comes to trading away picks and prospects. For example, this past off-season the Knights acquired: Nolan Patrick, Brett Howden, and Evgenii Dadonov. However, how important have they been?
When the Vegas Golden Knights made the trade to acquire said players, there were expectations set by the organization, but have those expectations been met? With Brett Howden in and out of the lineup, Nolan Patrick missing months with an upper-body injury, and Evgenii Dadonov going through hot and cold stretches, it doesn’t quite seem that these off-season acquisitions are working out for the Knights.
Now, you may be thinking that that statement is unfair because we don’t know what they are being asked to do- You’re right. But what we do know is that wins come from outscoring the opponent. Furthermore, means the Knights need to score and only one of them is in a position to do that- Evgenii Dadonov.
The Vegas Golden Knights were looking to add depth this off-season which led to the acquisition of forward, Evgenii Dadonov. That acquisition, although it appeared good, might not have been the right move given current circumstances.
Evgenii Dadonov has been one of the more versatile players this season. With the Vegas Golden Knights having faced multiple injuries this season, Dadonov has really stepped up. He has taken on multiple roles in different spots in the lineup before solidifying his spot on the third-line. Now the third-line doesn’t see near as many minutes on the ice- generally speaking. Nonetheless, he has done well for being on the third-line. Has he done enough to keep his spot on the Knights?
Looking at his stats from this season he has done okay, but not well enough. Dadonov is making $5,000,000 per year, but he hasn’t exactly performed to his worth. He has played in 36 games this season and has nine goals and eight assists for a total of 17 points. Now, although he has quite played ‘bad’, he hasn’t performed to expectations.
Furthermore, if you take a look at the earlier parts of the season, when the Vegas Golden Knights were short-handed, they were able to get a look at their prospects. With names like Jake Leschyshyn, Jonas Rondbjerg, and Paul Cotter getting chances, it proved that the Knights can win even with those guys in the lineup. So what actually separates Dadonov from those names? Maybe more production, but they can win without Dadonov in the lineup and save money.
Given the fact that the Vegas Golden Knights are in a bad financial situation, there will be at least one player moved. Given all the mock trades that people have done, there are multiple scenarios that makes sense. But given that the Knights situation, trading Evgenii Dadonov seems to make the most sense.