The Vegas Golden Knights are in an absolute free fall right now. After getting doubled up by the Edmonton Oilers on Sunday, 4-2, the Golden Knights suddenly have their fans thinking about next season. If there was ever a record for getting your fans to this point, this might be the record-breaker.
Even with next season, things get even murkier. Limited cap space ($3,787,500 for 2026-27 as of Monday, according to PuckPedia) and numerous free agents leave Kelly McCrimmon in an absolute hell. No, we're not talking about the searing heat that's coming for Las Vegas in the upcoming month, either.
Prepare to have your cars and faces scorched off, dear reader. The Las Vegas heat spares no soul.
Two big names come to mind in this regard. You have the big acquisition of Rasmus Andersson, who was acquired for a hefty price. Then, there's Pavel Dorofeyev, who's already shattered the single-season power play goals record in 2025-26 (16, in case you didn't know).
That puts McCrimmon in a corner regarding who to extend. Does he go with his new toy and hope that he turns around? Or does he go ahead with the rising winger who's turned the Golden Knights' power play around? Believe it or not, Andersson's recent play has swung the door open for a Dorofeyev extension.
Why Andersson's underwhelming play leaves the door open for Pavel Dorofeyev to stick around long-term
The Golden Knights haven't seen a power play this good since the team's NHL inception. Since the start of the 2024-25 season, Vegas has a power play percentage of 27.1%, carrying a record of 79-43-24 in the process (182 points and a points percentage of .623).
Obviously, fans can't deny that Tomas Hertl's bumper presence has had a massive impact. When you add 27 power play goals from the past two seasons to the Golden Knights' man advantage, you know you're doing something right. However, Dorofeyev's impact can't be denied, either.
Ironically, Dorofeyev has 29 power play goals in the past two seasons, making him equally valuable. He's also 25 years old, giving him a massive advantage over Andersson (29). A goal and five assists (with only one coming on the power play) isn't what Kelly McCrimmon signed up for, especially when said player is edging on 30 years old.
Are there some things that the Russian winger can work on? Absolutely. He must break his over-reliance on the power play as his production standard. But as mentioned, he has plenty of time to iron that out.
The Golden Knights still have work to do, even if they go with Dorofeyev
Now, some things must be done to make this happen. As mentioned, the Golden Knights only have $3,787,500 in available cap space, making life impossible for an extension without additional moves. That means one of the bulkier contracts might be moved to make room for Dorofeyev.
Earlier in the season, this wouldn't have been a problem. Before the Russian winger scored 30 goals and 21 assists (with 16 goals breaking the single-season power play goals record) as of Monday, nobody knew how he'd perform. Now? Dorofeyev presents a major elephant in the room that McCrimmon must address.
Of course, Andersson's underwhelming play might indicate that the general manager doesn't need as many peanuts as initially thought. If the Swedish Olympian's play doesn't take off by season's end, it should make McCrimmon's choice of who to extend crystal clear.