Vegas Golden Knights 24-25 Season Preview

Vegas Golden Knights
Pacific Division

2023-24 Recap
Record (W-L-OTL): 45-29-8
Over/Under: 39-40-3
Home Favorite: 20-12
Home Dog: 5-1
Road Favorite: 10-10
Road Dog: 8-10
Win Score 4 or more: 29 of 45
Lose Give Up 4 or more: 26 of 37
Puck Line Wins: 30 of 45
Puck Line Losses: 26 of 37
Front End Back-to-Back: 5-6
Back End Back-to-Back: 5-6
Goals Scored Per Game/: 3.21 (14th)
Goals Against Per Game/: 2.96 (12th)

Additions: Victor Olofsson, Alexander Holtz, Ilya Samsonov, Akira Schmid, Tanner Pearson (PTO)
Subtractions: Jonathan Marchessault, Chandler Stephenson, Alec Martinez, Logan Thompson, Michael Amadio, William Carrier, Anthony Mantha

Year one under head coach Bruce Cassidy brought the Golden Knights a Stanley Cup, but their hopes of being repeat champions ended in an opening round playoff loss to the Dallas Stars in 7 games. The Golden Knights said goodbye to 6 free agents and 8 players in the off-season. The departure of Jonathan Marchessault, one of the team’s original misfits and the franchise leader in goals, assists and points, will be felt both on and off the ice.

Offense
The Knights ranked 14th in offense last season, scoring 3.21 goals per game. Vegas hopes the signing of three-time 20 goal scorer Victor Olofsson to a free agent contract and the trade with New Jersey for Alexander Holtz (16 goals) will help offset the loss of Marchessault, who scored 42 goals. Trade deadline acquisition Tomas Hertl had a full summer to get healthy and has scored at least 20 goals five times in his career. If Vegas can get full seasons out of Jack Eichel and Mark Stone, that should more than compensate for the 42 goals Marchessault took with him to Nashville.

Defense
Even with the departure of Alec Martinez, the Golden Knights still possess one of the best blue lines in the NHL. Alex Pietrangelo, Noah Hanifin and Shea Theodore are elite puck movers and defenders. Nic Hague, Zach Whitecloud and Brayden McNabb all provide a physical presence and are solid in their own end. The biggest issue for the defense has been health. Brayden McNabb was the only member of the back end to feature in all 82 games last year.

Goaltending
Vegas will have a new tandem this season, as they traded Logan Thompson to Washington and signed free agent goalie Ilya Samsonov to share the net with Adin Hill, who battled injuries and inconsistencies throughout last season. Samsonov had a similar season with the Maple Leafs, which also included a shock stint in the minors. I would expect close to a 50/50 split between the two goalies.

Player to Watch - Tomas Hertl
Hertl slots in as the second line center for the Golden Knights behind Jack Eichel. With the departures of Stephenson and Marchessault, Hertl will be counted on to drive play on the second line. After recovering from knee surgery, he returned to the Vegas lineup for the final 6 games of the regular season and contributed 2 goals and 4 points, but had just one goal in 7 playoff games vs Dallas. The Golden Knights will be counting on Hertl to reach the 20-goal mark for the 6th time in his career.

Outlook
Despite 40% of last year’s team changing area codes, the Knights still have what it takes to finish as one of the top 3 seeds in the Pacific Division. DraftKings has the Vegas point total at 97.5 for the upcoming season and I do like the Over.

Regular Season point Total: 97.5 (Over/Under -115)
To Make the Playoffs: -300
To Miss the Playoffs: +235
To Win the Pacific Division: +450
To Win the Western Conference: +850
To Win the Stanley Cup: +1800