As we come down from the holiday season and the swirl of happy and angry and sad emotions that come with it, it's time to ponder what 2025 might bring for your Vegas Golden Knights. Fortunately, there's a way to glean an idea that doesn't involve becoming a divination witch. Since the 2021-22 season, the month with the lowest Points Percentage for the Golden Knights is the one we're a few days deep into: January (.498).
Last January, we saw the injury bug grow to kaiju-level proportions, squashing any chance at a top seed in the playoffs once February rolled around. And the season before that, which was even worse (.417), what kept things from going south was buoyed by a red-hot February that powered their way to the Stanley Cup. A fate that'll need to repeat this season if they wanna a chance for a second Cup come June.
As it stands, after Philadelphia last night, the signs are good. But the tricky bits are still lurking in the middle of the month with games against Minnesota (January 12th) and Carolina (January 17th) on the horizon. Not to mention an eight-day stretch between January 20 and January 28 involving teams that have been a part of good (Florida) and bad (Dallas) playoff history for the Golden Knights. They go through that as well as they were through December, or even partially close...2025 starts to look a lot brighter. Or at least 20% brighter, anyway...
Other Bits from the Realm:
- I had a whole thing talking about the offensive woes of Alexander Holtz and what his future might entail, especially after Pavel Dorofeyev ended his 12-game drought last week in San Jose. He also scored a nice screamer of a snap shot in the third period on Thursday against Philadelphia, becoming a little missive of hope for a turnaround going into the second half of the season. Then he left the game a few minutes later after taking a puck to the knee, and...oof!
You gotta feel for him in that moment, going through that kind of emotional whiplash. There isn't any development, as of this writing, what the injury is or how long Holtz might be out. But looking at him go off, the news doesn't engender the greatest of hopes. Fortunately, the offense is humming along with the same power and grace as Captain Marvel. So, even with Barbashev officially on the IR, it's something Vegas can adapt and power through going into the tough meat of the month [knock on giant pallets of wood].
- One last bit from San Jose: the highlight package the Sharks used to commemorate Tomas Hertl's time with the Sharks included a few blink-and-you-miss-it moments from their Game 7 win in the first round in 2019 against the Golden Knights. Is it possible it was a coincidence? Absolutely. But on the chance it was a subtle dig to a rival...[respectful golf clap] well played, San Jose. Well played!
- A little trivia blurb in commemoration of Ilya Samsonov's shutout of the Calgary Flames this past Sunday. The other eight goalies to also post a shutout in Golden Knights' history could be grouped into three distinct categories: the obvious (Marc-Andre Fleury, Logan Thompson, Adin Hill), the semi-obvious (Laurent Brossoit, Jonathan Quick, Robin Lehner, Malcolm Subban), and the "completely forgot about that guy...!" (Oscar Dansk).
On a separate note, for all the negative vibes that followed his signing this past Summer, Samsonov has been a great fit so far for Vegas. Is it also connected at least in part to the fact Adin Hill hasn't been hampered by injuries? Absolutely. But 7-1, 2.38 GAA, and .915 save percentage in his last eight starts...that's worth giving flowers, too. As a reminder, make sure all good luck charms are charged up and functioning until the middle of June.