Some things aren't meant to be easy. It doesn't matter if you're learning to ride a bike or do your taxes. Life has a way of teaching us the hardest lessons possible.
That could be the case for the Vegas Golden Knights, whose divisional rival just got better. They just got Chris Kreider some Mickey Mouse ears and a Disney Plus subscription. Time to binge-watch some Disney Renaissance movies!
The team? The Anaheim Ducks, who saw Kreider okay a deal on Wednesday. Now? The Ducks have a Stanley Cup-winning head coach in Joel Quenneville and a star winger.
Suddenly, the Pacific Division gets harder with a Stanley Cup Finalist and an emerging team. Don't forget about the Los Angeles Kings, who are looking to add some solid scoring (you know who I'm referring to). Golden Knights fans know the problems they faced with those pesky Kings this past season.
But let's go back to the man known as "Big Jet No Pilot" (yes, that's his nickname on Hockey Reference, no joke) for a second. We're talking 326 career goals and 256 assists. This past season alone saw the left winger score 22 goals.
Want a jaw-dropping stat? In 2021-22, the former Ranger scored 52 goals, with half of his goals coming on the power play (league-best). Anaheim is getting a proven goal-scorer who's not far removed from tremendous scoring seasons with the Rangers, making him a threat.
Why are the Anaheim Ducks suddenly a threat to the Vegas Golden Knights?
Adding a proven goal-scorer, especially on the power play, is a big move for the Ducks. They had the league's worst power play, scoring on only 11.8% of their man-advantage opportunities. That's enough to make Beavis and Butthead shiver.
Why not add a proven power play threat to improve the unit? That's what the Golden Knights did with Tomas Hertl to cure the beleaguered unit. The result? The second-best unit in the league (28.3%).
But that's not the only reason why fans should keep an eye on Mickey Mouse's favorite team. According to PuckPedia, Anaheim has $32,188,812 in available cap space to work with.
Guess who they're in the running for? That's right, dear reader. Mitch Marner.
They're expected to offer the "Core Four" member the highest contract possible, solidifying their status as an up-and-coming contender. Add some solid goaltending and extra draft picks to the mix and you have a team that could be a problem in the future.
Chris Kreider adds more to the Ducks
In 12 career games, Kreider has six goals, three assists, and a plus/minus of +3 against the Golden Knights. Those seem like a small sample size for a player who spent his career with the Rangers before his Disney adventures.
However, it's not something you can simply ignore. He's shown he can score at a high clip, adding more scoring to any team. He did this in the past four seasons, even leading the league in power play goals. In fact, he led the NHL in game-winning goals in 2021-22 with 11.
That's not even mentioning his hard-hitting abilities on the ice. He's amassed 1,593 hits in 13 seasons, making him a much-needed physical player on the top lines. Think of him as Ivan Barbashev, only with a bigger scoring touch.
For the longest time possible, the Pacific Division has been the butt of all jokes in the NHL. It was seen as a dumping ground for all forgotten middling teams. It seems that the times, they are a-changing. Golden Knights fans could see a new threat on the horizon in 2025-26, especially with Marner on board. Heck, it could be a good Disney movie (we know they need one of those during these times).