Let me be honest for one second. I was surprised to see Alexander Holtz's name in the 12-forward group for the Vegas Golden Knights. At least, this would be for the upcoming season since the Golden Knights offloaded players like Keegan Kolesar and Pavel Dorofeyev.
Still, seeing Holtz's name on the fourth line piqued some interest. What was he doing there? Does Trevor Connelly need a little more seasoning? But I was blown away by one other sight: his restricted free agent status for next season.
It turns out that the Swedish forward also has arbitration rights, which makes things more complicated for the Golden Knights. Is it worth keeping a player around when he isn't producing for the Vegas Golden Knights? Even worse, who would want the player in the first place?
With that, let's look at how the forgotten winger can climb back into the organization's good grace (or at least try). But let's also look at if there's any way that he can stick around with the Golden Knights beyond this season. It's time to deliver the meats like Arby's and see if it's truly a roast beef sandwich or... something else.
What can Holtz do to get back in the good graces of the Vegas Golden Knights?
For one, he can work on his shot better. When he came to the organization, the former first-round pick was as being an efficient sniper. That was his ticket towards staying in the lineup and producing roughly 20 goals a season.
Sadly, that hasn't translated to on-ice success. Holtz has produced a shooting percentage of 10% or lower in both seasons, leaving a lot to be desired.
Season | Shooting Percentage | Corsi | Fenwick |
|---|---|---|---|
2024-25 | 5.8% | 49% | 50% |
2025-26 | 10% | 46% | 46% |
Getting back to the basics of finding his shot will go a long way in keeping him around a little longer. But he can also help on the defensive side and his back-check. Why not go for the throat and create more takeaways. Having four combined takeaways in the past two seasons isn't keeping your job.
The good news? Holtz is making a concerted effort to do that, starting with the blocked shots. He has 26 in his two seasons, which doesn't seem like a lot. But he had 11 last season, which is a solid mark for playing in 28 games.
What happens if Alexander Holtz falls out of the lineup again?
That's it. He's done for if he falls out of the lineup or doesn't produce solid numbers. Holtz has been given plenty of opportunities to integrate into the Golden Knights' lineup. He's been put alongside the likes of Tomas Hertl, hoping to finally break his scoring woes.
Unfortunately, that hasn't been the case as he's been demoted to the Henderson Silver Knights time and time again. While he has produced solid numbers with the AHL club (nine goals and 13 assists in 29 games), that hasn't translated over to the NHL level (seven goals and 14 assists during his two-year Vegas residency).
That appears to be the trend that Holtz is heading down. He was given 81 games to show something with the organization and he hasn't delivered. Sadly, the only thing that he'll deliver if he doesn't right the ship will be Arby's. At least they have the meats.
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