The latest Rotowire numbers paint a softer picture of the Vegas Golden Knights’ injury situation than the panic might suggest.
Vegas landed in Rotowire’s “hit hard” tier this season, but the actual damage doesn’t look nearly as severe as the label implies. The Golden Knights earned a score of 1.90, which puts them 13th in the NHL - not exactly the profile of a team getting buried by injuries. Nineteen teams checked in at 1.50 or higher, and the New York Islanders topped the list at 3.38.
That matters because the Golden Knights have been lumped into the conversation as if they’re dealing with a full-blown crisis. They’re not. Mark Stone has not missed a game this season, and the report also points to a healthier overall picture than many around the team might assume.
The cap side of the equation looks manageable too. Alex Pietrangelo is listed as the biggest cap casualty, though his situation is framed less as a short-term setback and more as a source of long-term salary cap relief. Rotowire pegs Vegas at 19th in salary cap impact at $11.9 million, well behind the Minnesota Wild, who lead that category at $27.8 million.
Vegas also has four players out, which is far from the league’s worst number. The Toronto Maple Leafs have nine. And with Pietrangelo on season-ending LTIR, the Golden Knights are technically down to three in that count.
Victor Olofsson remains the most notable injury issue. He was skating last week in a red no-contact jersey and is currently with the team on its four-game road trip. Trevor Connelly also nearly suffered a devastating hit on Monday, but overall the report suggests the Golden Knights’ health and cap situation are not nearly as grim as they’ve been made out to be.
In Other News...
Golden Knights May Have Found The Edge They Were Missing
Ryan Craig shuffled his lineup before Vegas faced Pittsburgh, and the changes gave the Golden Knights a different look from the start. Brett Howden was moved to a new line, Adin Hill got the nod in goal, and the result was a tighter, more connected performance that helped Vegas grind out a 3-2 win and finish off a season sweep of the Penguins.
The Knights leaned on their penalty killing and kept finding ways to answer when the game got sticky, with contributions throughout the lineup from players such as Trevor Connelly and Mitch Marner. It was the kind of resilient effort Vegas has been trying to bottle for stretches this season, and it may have offered a glimpse of the edge the club has been searching for as the schedule keeps moving. [Read more 🡒]
Golden Knights Showed Their Depth In A Road Win Fans Needed
The Golden Knights got a much-needed road win in Pittsburgh, edging the Penguins 3-2 at PPG Paints Arena in a game that showed why their depth still matters. Tomas Hertl led the way with a pair of power-play goals, while Trevor Connelly and Jack Eichel also chipped in offensively as Vegas found enough answers to leave with two points.
Adin Hill did his part as well, turning aside 23 shots to help keep the game within reach when it tightened up. For a team looking to steady itself away from home, this was the kind of balanced effort that can travel, with special teams and timely scoring carrying the load when the margin for error was small. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres Fans Get A Painful Reminder Of The Jack Eichel Trade
The Jack Eichel trade still hangs over Buffalo every time the subject comes up, and for good reason. On Nov. 4, 2021, Vegas landed the center and a 2023 third-round pick from the Sabres, a move that sent Alex Tuch, Peyton Krebs, a 2022 first-round pick and a 2023 second-round pick back the other way, with Eichel arriving after a long layoff caused by a neck injury.
What made the deal sting even more for Sabres fans was what came next in Las Vegas. Eichel returned to form, became a major piece for the Golden Knights and helped them capture their first Stanley Cup in the 2022-23 season, while Buffalo tried to turn the draft capital into help but kept running into the same old problems in the standings. [Read more 🡒]