How the Golden Knights blue line buoyed Adin Hill throughout 2024-25

Brayden McNabb and the Vegas Golden Knights' blue line don't get much love. They block plenty of shots and take away countless shooting lanes to make Adin Hill's life much easier. Yet, the hockey world doesn't see it that way.

Man, it must be tough being McNabb. Even with a three-year contract extension, nobody pays attention to the 34-year-old's 167 blocked shots, 131 hits, and 21 takeaways this season. He has such a thankless gig.

Of course, that's the type of era we live in these days. The hockey world is filled with offensive-minded defenseman (i.e. Shea Theodore's 50 assists), where moving the puck is a must. That's the difference between having an Alec Martinez or your team and Cale Makar, after all.

But one person is particularly thankful for the defensive help. That would be Hill, who had a breakout season with the Golden Knights. The Calgary native had a GAA of 2.47 (sixth in the NHL), a save percentage of .906, and four shutouts (tied for seventh). That's great for a goaltender who's also forgotten.

Let's not forget that the goaltender had 14.5 goals saved above expected in 2024-25 (15th-best in the NHL, minimum of 25 games played). He's earned his six-year contract extension and is ready to lead his team to another deep Stanley Cup playoff run.

But he's not the only reason why the Golden Knights are tough to score on (third-fewest goals allowed per game with 2.61). He also has his blue line to thank for all their hard work and troubles. Here's how the defenseman group has helped Hill stay upright throughout the season.

How Brayden McNabb and the Golden Knights are helping Adin Hill

One particular graphic that showed up today came from the Vegas Golden Knights Twitter account (or X, whichever they're calling it nowadays). It highlighted a few eye-opening stats that showed the team's defensive excellence.

There wasn't much distance from the 12th-place team on the blocked shots list and the Golden Knights. They might've sat in 15th place, after all. However, they were only eight away from tying the Detroit Red Wings in that department.

The same can be said for the team takeaways, where the Golden Knights were only 12 from tying 10th place (Chicago Blackhawks). While these stats aren't eye-opening, allowing the fourth-fewest shots is (2,141).

That's part of the system Bruce Cassidy has put in place in Las Vegas. He's made it clear that shooting lanes must be taken away and sticks must be out at all times. Such a mentality has made life easier for Adin Hill, resulting in an emergence of sorts.

How the Vegas Golden Knights blue line will carry that into the Stanley Cup playoffs

The Minnesota Wild aren't a team that likes to shoot the puck much. They had the 10th-fewest shots taken this season (2,263). As a result, their offense hasn't done much to help themselves in scoring goals. Therefore, they're relying on beating you to death with 1-0 or 2-1 victories.

That leaves a wide-open opportunity for the Golden Knights to impose their lane-clogging strategy throughout the series. If Bruce Cassidy can gain control of the neutral zone and make the Wild work for their shot attempts, Vegas will have an easy series.

That's also the case with the Los Angeles Kings on a milder scale (15th-fewest in the NHL with 2,303). If they move past the Edmonton Oilers and suffocate their first-round opponents defensively, they'll have a similar strategy to put in place. If it's Edmonton (they have the most team shots with 2,622), it'll make Hill's job more stressful.

Luckily, the 28-year-old has Brayden McNabb and other defensive-minded defensemen in front of him. They employed a similar strategy in 2022-23 and had some excellent results. Let's say that strategy will come into play throughout the Stanley Cup playoffs. Who knows? Maybe McNabb will finally get the respect he deserves.