Many people are high on the Vegas Golden Knights this season. After signing Mitch Marner to an eight-year, $12 million AAV deal, people have jumped on the bandwagon, believing that the "Evil Empire" will take over the NHL landscape.
After all, you have a plethora of forwards that can dominate a game. Pick among names such as Marner, Jack Eichel, Mark Stone, and Tomas Hertl. Suddenly, the Golden Knights have a well-oiled machine set to dominate the league.
In fact, some rankings have the Golden Knights as high as the second-best team in the league. That's a great standing for a team looking to bring home another Stanley Cup. So, raise your glasses up to Kelly McCrimmon and company for creating a Stanley Cup contender that strikes fear into the hearts of 31 other teams.
Also, cue Darth Vader.
But let's explore this team a little further. After all, fans must realize where the expectations lie heading into the 2025-26 season. You can't navigate the NHL landscape like you're Helen Keller driving.
Let's look at where the points lie for Vegas. What's the ceiling for the team? What's the worst-case scenario for these Stanley Cup contenders?
Which factors will determine the Vegas Golden Knights succeeding in 2025-26?
Last season, the Vegas Golden Knights were blessed by the hockey Gods (Hosannah in the highest) with the best possible health outcome. Players like Jack Eichel (77 games) and Shea Theodore (67 games) avoided missing 20 or more games during the regular season. The team's overall health will determine where they stand at the end of the 2025-26 regular season.
The crazy part is you can't predict when said injuries will happen. It's part of why the Golden Knights missed the playoffs in 2021-22 and it's also a part of why they had early exits in 2018-19 and 2023-24. If the team can avoid debilitating injuries, they should have no trouble racking up more than 100 points.
One other factor will be how the blue line adjusts. Losing Alex Pietrangelo and Nicolas Hague is rough for numerous reasons. One, you lose plenty of size in the defenseman group. Two, you don't have guys who give it all as defensemen.
How will the new-look blue line adjust to the losses? Will they fill the gaps and take the pressure off Adin Hill and Akira Schmid? That's the big question heading into the 2025-26 season.
Projecting how the Golden Knights will finish points-wise
On an optimistic, rosy side, the Golden Knights finish with 115 points. Believe me, I nearly typed 155 points. But that's nearly impossible to pull off, especially when playing an 82-game season.
There are no injuries and Bruce Cassidy doesn't have to adjust his defenseman group too much. Life's good, the team's heading to the Stanley Cup Final, and there are unicorns and tons of happiness in Las Vegas.
On the pessimistic side, the team finishes with 90 points. That's good enough (or bad enough) to be on the playoff fringe and be eliminated from the first round. Injuries overwhelm the team, January acts like January by kicking the team while they're down, and Adin Hill and Akira Schmid have trouble adjusting to the new-look defensive group. Life's rough and Las Vegas tourism numbers don't help the fanbase feel good.
As for the middle ground? I'm saying 106 points. Some fans have uncertainty regarding the goaltending situation and the Jack Eichel contract situation. That's understandable! However, there's too much talent for this team to underperform and not get more than 100 points when fully healthy.
Long live the "Evil Empire."