Everything was going well for the Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday. Jack Eichel added to his pursuit of 100 or more points and silenced the Buffalo Sabres crowd with a game-winning goal in the second period. On top of that, the Golden Knights walked away with seven out of eight possible points on the road trip. How awesome is that?
Well, nearly everything was awesome. Let's not forget that defenseman Noah Hanifin went down with a nasty injury in Sunday's game during the third period. The aftermath? He went down the tunnel and fans are anxiously awaiting updates on the Olympic gold medalist.
Per the broadcast, Noah Hanifin went down the tunnel after this hit. Not on the bench. pic.twitter.com/jWWGnoycdy
— Danny Webster (@DannyWebster21) November 8, 2026
This season, Hanifin has two goals and four assists in 19 games. He has 1.2 total point shares and has 35 blocked shots. That's plenty of production that's going out the window for the Golden Knights, who've already lost Parker Wotherspoon to an upper-body injury (broken finger) on the blue line.
So, what happens when the Golden Knights lose yet another defenseman? Mind you, this is the better defenseman that they've lost this season since Wotherspoon hasn't done much with the Golden Knights. Let's examine what the problem is with not having an Olympic gold medalist around in the lineup, shall we? Believe it or not, the potential loss would be far more devastating than people realize.
Why losing Noah Hanifin would hurt the Vegas Golden Knights more than they realize
First, Hanifin is a sizable defenseman that takes up space. Standing at 6'3" and weihing 206 lbs., the Boston native isn't hard to miss. That explains why he's so proficient at blocking shots in his current position.
But he's doing better in generating juicy scoring chances. His goals above expected (courtesy of MoneyPuck) stands at 0.4 this season. Now, that isn't much in the big picture. Still, it's better than his stat of -3.4 in the same category from last season.
You can talk about how well he does in his given role. You can also throw in his penchant for taking the puck away. But his biggest draw is generating scoring chances and shooting the puck when he's in the offensive zone.
That will cause numerous problems within the Golden Knights' apparatus. In fact, a couple of areas stand out here, specifically with one area improving in recent weeks.
Who gets affected the most by a potential Noah Hanifin absence?
The goaltenders will definitely feel the brunt of Hanifin's absence, whether people want to admit it or not. Hanifin is actually part of the second-best Golden Knights pairing this season with a xGoals% of 60.2%. That's attributed to the pairing's defensive acumen, which explains why they have the third-best xGoals against this season (3.5, minimum of 50 minutes).
The Hanifin-Lauzon pairing has done wonders for the Golden Knights this season. It's given the goaltenders plenty of up-front protection, deterring high-danger chances. But it's also the offensive aspect that hurts. Sure, the Olympic gold medalist had a down year last season. But he's improved, making the potential loss more noticeable among the puck-moving defensemen.
Losing Hanifin will hurt the Golden Knights more than people realize. The goaltending could take a massive hit and the defensemen's puck-moving abilities could be greatly hindered. Here's hoping that things aren't as severe, especially with a depleted blue line.
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