Should Golden Knights fans be concerned about the future?

The Daily Faceoff whipped out the ol' crystal ball last week and saw which NHL players would run the league. As expected, names like Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, and Quinn Hughes were on the leaderboard. After all, these were the best players you could find in the NHL.

Looking at the list, you'll see bright youngin's such as Macklin Celebrini of the San Jose Sharks and Connor Bedard of the Chicago Blackhawks. These are the stars of tomorrow that'll leave fans in awe. But you'll also see other mainstays such as Auston Matthews, Nathan MacKinnon, and Quinn Hughes. These stars will continue molding the NHL landscape.

What you won't see on the Top 30 are any Vegas Golden Knights on the list (at least, currently). Not a single player currently on the Golden Knights made the squad, raising some concerns about their future viability as competitors.

• 30.) Owen Power, Buffalo Sabres
• 29.) Jeremy Swayman, Boston Bruins
• 28.) Matt Boldy, Minnesota Wild
• 27.) Zeev Buium, Minnesota Wild
• 26.) Leo Carlsson, Anaheim Ducks
• 25.) Wyatt Johnston, Dallas Stars
• 24.) Igor Shesterkin, New York Rangers
• 23.) Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton Oilers
• 22.) Lucas Raymond, Detroit Red Wings
• 21.) Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche
• 20.) Moritz Seider, Detroit Red Wings
• 19.) Miro Heiskanen, Dallas Stars
• 18.) Seth Jarvis, Carolina Hurricanes
• 17.) Tim Stutzle, Ottawa Senators
• 16.) Thomas Harley, Dallas Stars
• 15.) Yaroslav Askarov, San Jose Sharks
• 14.) Luke Hughes, New Jersey Devils
• 13.) Filip Gustavson, Minnesota Wild
• 12.) Rasmus Dahlin, Buffalo Sabres
• 11.) Kirill Kaprizov, Minnesota Wild
• 10.) Jake Sanderson, Ottawa Senators
• 9.) Gavin McKenna
• 8.) Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs
• 7.) Jake Oettinger, Dallas Stars
• 6.) Connor Bedard, Chicago Blackhawks
• 5.) Jack Hughes, New Jersey Devils
• 4.) Quinn Hughes, Vancouver Canucks
• 3.) Macklin Celebrini, San Jose Sharks
• 2.) Cale Makar, Colorado Avalanche
• 1.) Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers

Yep, you know what's comin'... the overexaggerations.

But is there an actual cause for concern in Sin City? Will the Golden Knights become as dead and dormant as the Raiders have been for the past few decades? Well, some factors are in play here, ranging from the front office to the farm system.

Why Vegas Golden Knights fans should be worried about the future

Looking at the Top 30, you'll see plenty of names that are projected to develop into superstars. We're talking about players such as Bedard, Celebrini, and Gavin McKenna.

But diving into the prospect rankings, you'll see the Golden Knights aren't well-respected. Some publications, such as the Hockey Writers, have them ranked 27th. Some go lower than that, leaving them closer to the 30s.

Part of that has been the wheelin' and dealin' nature of McCrimmon. He's traded first-round picks and prospects for superstars, including Ivan Barbashev, Tomas Hertl, and Noah Hanifin.

It's become second-nature for the general manager, considering the Golden Knights have been competitive since "Day F*****g One." When you're in a Stanley Cup contention window, you'll do whatever it takes to win. That means mortgaging the future to get the stars of today.

That could come back to haunt the Golden Knights in 2030. One can look at the success of Nick Suzuki and see how that burned Vegas in the long term. If McCrimmon deals Trevor Connelly for an injury-prone (or underwhelming) superstar, it's game over for competitive viability.

Why Golden Knights fans shouldn't worry about the future

While that wheelin' and dealin' nature might hurt the team's future, it could also work for McCrimmon and company if done correctly. You see, Suzuki has been the only Golden Knights first-round draft pick who's panned out so far. Other names are either in reduced roles, out of the NHL altogether, or haven't hit the scene yet.

Of course, McCrimmon isn't responsible for all these prospect trades. However, one can look at a player like Zach Dean and see that his limited time with the Springfield Thunderbirds hasn't gone as well as fans hoped. He scored 10 goals and eight assists in two seasons (60 games), leaving some fans a bit underwhelmed.

One can say the Golden Knights might intentionally make these bad picks. However, that's not the case with a player like Connelly, who has all the promise and potential in the world. The same goes for later-round draft picks such as Carl Lindbom, who can potentially surprise people.

Don't count Kelly McCrimmon out in any situation

Besides, not every player will have their current teams set in stone by 2030. Everyone knows how inept the Buffalo Sabres have been in the past decade, yet they have two players on this list. Rasmus Dahlin or Owen Power could become Golden Knights in the future if Kelly McCrimmon needs to fill a blue-line void or two. Heck, those Quinn Hughes rumors surrounding him with the New Jersey Devils aren't going away any time soon.

The same goes for players like Kaprizov and McDavid, whose futures are unknown. Could McCrimmon make a move for either player in the future while breaking the league? Stay tuned.

Who knows? Some of these players might fall off in the future. You might see a player like Askarov or McKenna not live up to the hype when they enter the NHL full-time. There's a reason why a player like Alexandre Daigle is known for being a draft bust.

Regardless, Golden Knights fans shouldn't worry too much about the future. 2030 is a ways away and some things will certainly change. That could include McCrimmon *GASP* being gone along with Bruce Cassidy.

However, there's an old saying that goes a little something like this:

"The more things change, the more they stay the same."