In just their fourth season in the NHL, the Vegas Golden Knights look to have another strong run at the Stanley Cup. Most hockey fans remember Vegas as the greatest expansion team of all time because they reached the Cup Finals in their inaugural season. I am a Pittsburgh native, but I have been a Vegas hockey fan dating back to one of their minor league teams, the Wranglers. The reason why is because I have had family who has lived down there dating back to the 1980s. Through their first three full seasons, Vegas made it to the Stanley Cup Playoffs all three times, reached the conference finals twice and the Cup Finals once.
In season four, I think they are the most complete team in the NHL. Through 18 games in the season so far, they look like they cannot be stopped and find many ways to win hockey games.
Starting with goalies Robin Lehner and Marc-Andre Fleury, they have been great so far. Lehner has unfortunately been dealing with a shoulder injury the last few weeks which is a reason why his numbers are down unlike previous years including the playoffs. However, Marc-Andre Fleury has been sensational for Vegas when called upon. Many were wondering if he would be a Golden Knight to start the season, but he has shown that he's got plenty left in the tank for Vegas. He currently has a record of 10-3-0 with a 1.77 goals against average and a .935 save percentage. He also leads the NHL with three shutouts.
On defense, the Golden Knights signed top free agent defenseman Alex Pietrangelo to a seven year contract worth around 61 million dollars. Pietrangelo so far has two goals and 8 points through 15 games. Shea Theodore currently leads all Vegas defensemen with 14 points in just 15 games. Alec Martinez so far has 9 points in 18 games played.
With the forwards, captain Mark Stone leads the Golden Knights in assists and points. So far, Stone has four goals with 18 assists and 22 points along with 19 takeaways. Max Pacioretty so far leads the team in goals with 10 including two of them in a crucial victory against the Minnesota Wild. Pacioretty also leads the team with 79 shots on goal. Alex Tuch is picking up his goal-scoring ability from last year's playoffs with eight goals in 18 games along with 14 points.
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