Before Tuesday's game against the New York Islanders, people were worried about Pavel Dorofeyev. The Russian winger hadn't had a goal since November 16 against the Minnesota Wild, leaving some fans concerned about his contributions. Lo and behold, he responds in kind with two goals in the last three games. Sounds good, right?
Well...
Pavel Dorofeyev not on the bench to begin the third.
— Danny Webster (@DannyWebster21) December 14, 2025
Yep. Chalk another potential casualty up on the board. The Vegas injury bug strikes again.
Now, if you remember the game against the New York Islanders, Dorofeyev took a fairly gnarly nick that left him gingerly moving. It almost knocked the soul out of him before he left Saturday's game against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Let's get one thing clear. If the Golden Knights lose Dorofeyev for a while, that's bad news on the offensive front. You're losing 13 goals and eight assists in 2025-26. Off the bat, you don't have a valuable winger who can fire a puck literally anywhere. It doesn't matter if the Russian winger is coming broadside or on a breakaway.
Simple enough, right? Well, the only problem is that, well, there's more than one problem. Losing Dorofeyev would have drastic consequences for the overall Golden Knights' apparatus. You know what's coming, dear reader. It's time to dive into the ramifications of losing one of your best goal-scorers for Vegas.
What could the Vegas Golden Knights lose if Pavel Dorofeyev is out for an extended period?
Let's focus on the power play since that's Dorofeyev's bread and butter. The Golden Knights have enjoyed savory goodness on a roll thanks to the 25-year-old's eight power play goals. Right off the bat, you don't have a key winger who can fire off blistering shots while filling the stomachs.
However, you can tell that his presence bolsters the power play in other aspects. That includes how his teammates feed him and his shot selection. The advanced stats show that his presence makes the NHL's seventh-best power play entering Sunday (24.7%) tick (stats courtesy of MoneyPuck).
Player On The Power Play | Shooting Percentage | Corsi | Fenwick | Shooting Talent Above Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Pavel Dorofeyev | 19.4% | 91% | 88% | 13.2% |
Without arguably your best shooter, you're relying more on having a slot presence. Teams can neutralize that by ensuring Tomas Hertl doesn't get the middle of the ice or in front. That could leave the Golden Knights hamstrung, specifically since the unit would be heavier on the passer side.
In fact, losing Dorofeyev means you're losing a valuable shooter altogether. He has a shooting percentage of 15.7%, making him the fourth-best shooter on the Golden Knights (minimum of 15 games). Considering that Dorofeyev also has the second-most shots for Vegas (83), that makes the situation murkier.
If the 25-year-old is shelved for a long time, that'll have dramatic consequences for Vegas. It could lead to halted momentum and an attack tied for 14th entering Sunday (3.06) failing to secure those key goals as they did during the road trip. That could even lead to Golden Knights fans cursing the injury gods over their rotten luck.
Time to get out the good luck sage, folks. Vegas is going to need it.