Golden Knights Analysis
Silver Knight Jonas Rondbjerg Overused By Golden Knights In 21-22
Welcome back to Vegas Hockey Now’s season in review series where we look at every player on the Vegas Golden Knights and their 2021-22 season from Michael Amadio to Zach Whitecloud. Today’s player is Jonas Rondbjerg. Let’s jump right into things.
Jonas Rondbjerg
Overall Thoughts
Due to a massive influx of injuries, the Vegas Golden Knights relied on a good 14 AHL players to patchwork their roster this past season. In this series, we will be skipping over most of these names. But given the number of games they played, Jake Leschyshyn, Logan Thompson, and our man of the day Jonas Rondbjerg will all be discussed.
Playing in 30 games for the Golden Knights, Rondbjerg played in more games this season than you might have remembered. He wasn’t all that noticeable on the ice as he had limited ice time and was one of the first guys on the team benched in tight games.
There’s nothing wrong with this. If all things went according to plans, Rondbjerg would have likely spent the entirety of the 21-22 season in the AHL and continued his development. A 2017 third-round pick, Rondbjerg is just 23 years old.
The Golden Knight’s prospect cupboards have been emptied in favor of win-now superstars like Jack Eichel and Mark Stone. Rondbjerg shows that the Golden Knights need more depth in their minor league systems. He is just not good enough to be the second call-up from the AHL yet and needs more time.
Highlights
Like any player who made their debut in the NHL, Rondbjerg’s first NHL game, point, and goal all make the list of his highlights. He made his debut in just game two for the Golden Knights. It took him just three games to register a point in the NHL as he tallied an assist against the Ottawa Senators. His first NHL goal came in a memorable game as Paul Cotter also scored his first against the Minnesota Wild.
His other goal was a beauty against the Nashville Predators in November.
Jonas Rondbjerg went top corn pudding 🌽 pic.twitter.com/yJldKZjmPD
— Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) November 25, 2021
In total Rondbjerg was recalled/reassigned by the Golden Knights 27 times in 2021-22.
What’s Next?
A lack of depth forced Rondbjerg into the lineup in 2021-22. But assuming the Golden Knights are fully-healthy starting next season, he will have to fight to keep a roster spot. Brett Howden, Nolan Patrick, and the potential emergence of Brendan Brisson will likely cost Rondbjerg a spot in the bottom-six.
But at 23 years old Ronbjerg still has some development to do in the AHL with the Henderson Silver Knights. It’s not a bad thing the Golden Knights have him sitting in the minors with NHL experience.