In March 2024, the Vegas Golden Knights made a flurry of trades to maximize their Stanley Cup contention window. Kelly McCrimmon acquired big names like Tomas Hertl, Anthony Mantha, and Noah Hanifin to bolster their offensive output. They also got Mark Stone back for the playoff run. It didn't matter if it was on even strength or the power play. The goal was to repeat as the Stanley Cup champions.
Sadly, that's not how things turned out as the Dallas Stars eliminated the Golden Knights in the first round. To make matters worse, they lost key players from that run, including Jonathan Marchessault and Chandler Stephenson. McCrimmon didn't make splashy moves during the summer, watching names like Patrik Laine head to different locations. It's no surprise that critics are skeptical of the team's current state.
"Not so fast," says Stone!
The Captain believes the Golden Knights have a good contention window, armed with players like Jack Eichel. The team also plays in the Pacific Division, a division notorious for being the little brother of the Western Conference. That should provide hope for fans heading into the new hockey season. But does he have a valid point about the contention window?
What Mark Stone said about the contention window of the Vegas Golden Knights
Most hockey fans have an opinion of the Vegas Golden Knights. Some love and laud them for their early success, citing an excellent front office as the "gold" standard. Others dislike them, citing their use of the LTIR rules and being "handed" a great team by Gary Bettman as examples. Mark Stone summed it up best when describing people's feelings of the Golden Knights.
"As I'm older, I have realized that people are going to put a bullseye on our back because they want to see us fail. We haven't failed too much in our history. People want to see the Golden Knights crash and burn. But like I said, I think the foundation we built doesn't really allow for that to happen. So, I'm feeling confident."Mark Stone
Stone highlights the big additions as a reason for Vegas being contenders. There's truth to this, especially since the power play looked good in the last six games of last season. When Tomas Hertl returned, the unit had a percentage of 46.7, far above what they've posted historically. There are also younger players like Alexander Holtz and Pavel Dorofeyev that give the team hope.
The Pacific Division might have two heavyweights in the Vancouver Canucks and Edmonton Oilers. However, it's always been the inferior division to the Central Division. The Golden Knights have a chance, especially since teams like the San Jose Sharks and Calgary Flames are rebuilding. All Jack Eichel and company need to do is maintain the status quo and play to their strengths. Who knows? They might have a big name come in to save the day.