Entering Sunday's game against the Chicago Blackhawks, the Vegas Golden Knights find themselves in a rut. They lost seven of their last eight games heading into Sunday, marking an absolutely abysmal stretch. Mind you, I wanted to say "eight of their last nine" since, well, it's been that bad.
Of course, you can attribute the stinker stretch to numerous factors. The team is hobbled by injuries yet again. You're already missing key players like William Karlsson and Brayden McNabb. The good news? It appears that reinforcements are on the horizon, with Jack Eichel returning and fans seeing Adin Hill come back.
Second, the team has just been... bad. Sure, you're getting a big guy like Jaycob Megna on board. But that still goes back to injuries, with the top pair missing due to health problems. When you have the literal "Replacements" coming in, problems happen.
It's something that has bugged Golden Knights fans all season long. This team has been underperforming, whether it's an underachieving fourth line or due to the dreaded injury bug. Speaking of underachieving, that's something that Vegas desperately needs to correct right now...
Why the Vegas Golden Knights need more volunteers from a personal account
On Sunday, I got back into the volunteering swing after a couple of months of being absent. But this time was vastly different. I was playing with the little cats and cleaning out their kennels. The little furballs were cuddling up and hanging out, brushing their heads against me.
It reignited something within me, a good feeling, if you will. I felt like I was giving back to my community and was helping the animal population move one step closer to being adopted. Like, how cool of a feeling is that?
That's the mentality that the Golden Knights must carry throughout January. The team is hobbled and playing like utter trash. They need all hands on deck, especially during one of the tougher months.
Honestly, it's a miracle that the Golden Knights are hanging around the first-place mark before Sunday's game against the Blackhawks. The Pacific Division has been awful, meaning that the division is theirs for the taking. If Vegas gets a "volunteering" mentality, it can help the Las Vegas community once more.