The Las Vegas Golden Knights are set to defend their Stanley Cup Champion status, and fans will be watching. What exactly does the season look like, though, and how will the Knights do against the best the NHL offers?
Let’s look at the toughest early games on the Las Vegas Golden Knights’ 2023-2024 schedule.
1. Golden Knights’s journey starts against the Seattle Kracken
The Golden Knights start their march against the Seattle Kraken. This is going to be a great test to see who rules the Pacific Division. Las Vegas is 7-1 against the Kraken and will hopefully improve upon that record in game one. The Kraken may look like mince meat thanks to that 7-1 record, but they are an organization that is getting progressively better. The fact that they finally beat the Knights last season and made the playoffs proves that.
When: Oct 10
2. Las Vegas will then go swimming with the San Jose Sharks
Las Vegas takes on the Sharks in another critical matchup. The Sharks want to rebound from their 32-37 record, and the Golden Knights are a great opponent for that. The Sharks have a 12-23 record against Las Vegas and a 2-2 record in 2022.
One problem is top-six defenseman Alexander Barabanov, who is tough to shoot against. After the Sharks, They take on The Anaheim Ducks in their third straight divisional matchup. It will be a home game for Las Vegas against one of their easier opponents. This might be a great game to see live due to the strength of the opponent.
When: Oct 12, Oct 14
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3. The Golden Knights face the Stars
The next game to examine is the match against the Stars.
The overall record has Las Vegas with an 8-3-3 record all time. If you look at last year’s numbers, however, you will see that the Stars had a 3-0-3 record against the Knights during the 2022 regular season. That makes this one of the toughest games on the schedule early on. It will also be one that fans want to watch in person for the intensity level alone.
Another thing that makes this game so important is the fact that the Stars’ head Coach, Pete Deboer, is the guy who used to coach the Golden Knights before being fired in 2021. That makes this game personal, and that’s when hockey is at its best.
When: Oct 16
4. Get ready for a Golden Knights playoff rematch against the Winnipeg Jets
The next game everyone should pay attention to is the Oct 19 meeting with the Winnipeg Jets. This is effectively a rematch of the first round of the 2022 playoffs and should be great to watch. The Golden Knights lead this series to 8-4-2, which could be another early win to rack up.
The Golden Knights are at their best when they are ahead. Put them behind the eight ball, and things could go differently.
When: Oct 19
Looking at the 2023-2024 Las Vegas Golden Knights
There are some questions about the Golden Knights heading into the season. The first is what the goalie rotation will look like with Robin Lehner out. Adin Hill has already signed a multi-year extension, and Thompson will look to impress in his comeback from an injury in 2022. That’s a great start, but what happens if another injury occurs?
They had a similar platoon of goalies in 2022 that included Jonathon Quick, Laurent Brossoit, and Logan Thompson. Now, there is an argument to be made that using the platoon method will prevent the goalie rotation from gaining momentum, but it also gives the opponents different goalies to prepare for.
As for the offense, they feature some of the best players in the NHL. Guys like Jonathon Marchesussualt, Mark Stone, Shea Theodore, and Reily Smith are all unstoppable firebrands. In fact, Las Vegas ranked fourth in points scored last season and could do more damage in 2023.
Will the Las Vegas Golden Knights’ defense hold?
The Golden Knights have one of the best offenses in the league, but is that enough to go back-to-back? Las Vegas also likely has to worry about other teams learning to slow them down. Either that or injuries causing changes to the lineup and putting out a less-than-stellar team.
Those are all variables that Las Vegas and their fans will have to watch play out. The biggest concerns will be staying healthy, conditioning the team, and managing to outcoach their opponents. If the Knights can do all that one more time, they might hold the Stanley Cup again!
Check out the whole season schedule here.
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