Golden Knights Players on International Rosters

The NHL and NHL Player’s Association are working through the hurdles of NHL players returning to international competition. The goal would be to have an international competition in the even-numbered years. There would possibly be a 2025 international tournament, a rotation of Olympic competitions, and the World Cup of Hockey every two years.

Which players from the Vegas Golden Knights could make international rosters?

The locks: Jack Eichel and Alex Pietrangelo are the locks to make their country’s respective rosters.

Auston Matthews would be the top-line center. Eichel would slot in as the second or third-line center for the United States.  Dylan Larkin and Jack Hughes would be in the mix as well.

Pietrangelo would join Cale Makar, Aaron Ekblad, and Drew Doughty on the Canadian team. That is a lot of Stanley Cups defending the Canadian blue line.

The fringe: Mark Stone, William Karlsson, Jonathan Marchessault, Shea Theodore, Logan Thompson, and Adin Hill are on the bubble to make international rosters.

Stone is on the fringe list only for his health issues. One would have to think owner Bill Foley would not support Stone playing at any level of competitive hockey not wearing a Golden Knights jersey.

Karlsson, Marchessault, and Theodore would be solid players for their respective countries. It just comes down to the depth that Sweden and Canada have.

Hill and Thompson were the top Canadian goalies in goals against average last season. Hill had the best save percentage and Thompson had the third-best save percentage for Canadian goalies last season. Are those numbers sustainable for a second year in a row to earn consideration for Team Canada in 2025?

Long shots: Ivan Barbashev and Zach Whitecloud are long shots for international consideration.

International competition is not known for its high level of physicality, but there could be a place for a physical player who can score in Barbashev.

Whitecloud has a great professional future. 2025 or 2026 might be too soon for Whitecloud to make Team Canada. It would not be a surprise to see Whitecloud get consideration for Team Canada in 2028