The Golden Knights lost to the Canadiens in the third round due to the attrition the roster went through in the first two rounds against Minnesota and Colorado. Also, injuries down the stretch, but it’s fair to say the first two rounds were absolute wars.
When Nicolas Roy is your first line center and best player for several games— you have to think the roster was tired, injured, out of gas. You pick a term that you think fits best.
Now that is not to deny that Roy deserves credit for stepping up in the way he did, but you have to wonder if depth will be an issue once again.
Let’s look at the lineup going into this year compared to the lineup starting the season last year.
Beginning of 2020-21 Season:
Pacioretty-Stephenson-Stone
Marchessault-Karlsson-Smith
Tuch-Glass-Roy
Carrier-Nosek-Reaves
Kolesar
McNabb-Pietrangelo
Martinez-Theodore
Holden-Whitecloud
Lehner
Fleury
Beginning of Camp 2021-22:
Pacioretty-Stephenson-Stone
Marchessault-Karlsson-Smith
Janmark-Patrick-Dadonov
Carrier-Roy-Kolesar
Krebs
Martinez-Pietrangelo
McNabb-Theodore
Hague-Whitecloud
Lehner
Brossoit
Several big changes. Let’s go a little further into them.
Marc-Andre Fleury is gone. You can’t start anywhere else. He was the team’s MVP and won a Vezina last year. The team is undeniably worse without him. If Lehner gets injured or stumbles out the gate then GM Kelly McCrimmon will have a problem on his hands.
Tuch is out until January. This one hurts, but the offensive options will really start booming when he returns. If no one is injured then one of Janmark or Dadonov will be pushed to the fourth line.
Peyton Krebs is knocking on the door. Krebs got himself into a few games at the end of the season last year — even playing in Pacioretty’s spot on the 1st line left wing. He’s been training with Pacioretty all summer in Las Vegas and the organization has high hopes for him. He’s currently playing center on the 5th line in camp, but expect that to change.
Reaves is gone. Everyone has their own opinion on Ryan Reaves, but it’s undeniable that he made an impact for the Golden Knights. Having someone that scary in your lineup let’s everyone feel a little more confident on the ice. His departure was just one more step away from the original roster that made the Stanley Cup Finals.
More depth in the bottom six. Fleury being traded opened up seven million in cap space. Ryan Reaves being traded for a 3rd opened up 1.3 million. This space was used to bring in Evgenii Dadonov (5M), Laurent Brossoit (2.325x2) and Nolan Patrick(1.2x2).
Peter DeBoer had this to say about their new depth:
“I think we’re going to be able to score with our depth. I think we’re going to be able to attack in waves with our forwards this year. I like the feel of it, even though it’s day one.”
That is a lot of expectation. Particularly for the line of Janmark-Patrick-Dadonov. The two newcomers on that line needed a refresh button pressed on their careers after underwhelming 2020-21 regular seasons.
If that line works out, then we’re looking at a much better Golden Knights team year over year. MVP goaltender notwithstanding.
Thanks for reading,
Trevor Neufeld
Follow me on Twitter @Trevor_Neufeld
Vegas Golden Knights Blogger • 
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