Krepps: 10 Things I’m Looking Forward to in the Golden Knight’s 2022-23 Season

Hi. Before we get underway with the start of the 2022-23 season, I wanted to have a quick aside and thank all of you readers for your support over the last year or so.

A lot has changed in one year. Last year at this time, I was an intern with Pittsburgh Hockey Now and a senior in college. Now I’m a full-time beat reporter covering an NHL team, 2,000+ miles from home.

Again I want to thank not only you readers but the staff with National Hockey Now, the Vegas Golden Knight’s staff, and of course, my family back home.

As we wait for the Golden Knights to announce their final roster cuts, I wanted to share some of the things I am looking forward to most for the upcoming season. These are in no particular order.

Penguins v Golden Knights

Given that I grew up in western Pennsylvania, I was raised as a Pittsburgh Penguins fan. So I’m understandably excited to cover Golden Knights when they play my childhood team at home on Janurary 5th and in Pittsburgh on December 1st. The VGK are 3-5-0 all-time against the Pens.

Phil Kessel’s Milestones

Again, I was in high school when the Penguins and current Golden Knight Phil Kessel won back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017. So having the opportunity to cover what could potentially be a record-breaking season for Phil is a blessing.

Kessel is only nine games away from becoming the all-time ironman in NHL history for consecutive games played. He can also hit 400 career goals and 1,000 career points this season.

Traveling

I’m going to try and go on a couple of trips this season to cover the Golden Knights on the road. I have had the pleasure of working in four out of 32 NHL arenas, and I want to hit all 32 by the time I retire!

I’ll be driving to cover the games in Anaheim, Los Angeles, and Arizona potentially, and also might fly to New York City for games against the Rangers and Islanders.

Reverse Retros

I’m not one to go crazy over jerseys, but I am excited to see the new designs for the anticipated 2022-23 NHL reverse retros jerseys. The Golden Knights had their designs leaked back in September. No team has officially come out and revealed their jerseys yet,

Game Presentation

On the same note of aesthetics, I am beyond excited to get to see what the Vegas Golden Knights presentation crew has in store for 2022-23. Again, I’ve only been to four NHL arenas, but I can safely say that T-Mobile Arena and the Golden Knights have the best in-game presentations in the league.

John Wick Mode still gives me chills, and Vegas Lights is the perfect goal song.

Jack Eichel

I think I can speak for all of Las Vegas when I say that we are excited to see what Jack Eichel can do in a full 82-game season with the Golden Knights. He’ll be a treat to watch night in and night out, and I expect to watch some slick jaw-dropping goals from the press box.

The Trade Deadline

Who doesn’t love the trade deadline? Well… probably some players who might be moving cities. But I’m excited to cover my first NHL trade deadline in person.

The Unexpected

Parity is one of my favorite things about hockey. The Vegas Golden Knights made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Final in 2018. Nobody saw that coming. I’m excited to cover the unexpected stories that will hit the 2022-23 NHL season. It’s just a matter of when they will arise.

The Stories

Another thing that isn’t exactly pinpoint, I’m excited to share the stories from the Golden Knights locker room with the fans and other readers in the hockey world.

I took a stab at my first feature story with a story on the recovery of Jake Bischoff the other day. Give it a read if you haven’t already, and stay tuned for more!

The Stanley Cup Playoffs

The best time of the year is in Spring, with my birthday and the start of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Will the Golden Knights make it back into the top-16? We’ll have to wait and see.