Golden Knights Analysis
4 Reasons Promising Golden Knights Fizzled Out in Second Round
Well, folks, it’s over. Break out the golf clubs and start booking tee times, because it’s officially the offseason. On Wednesday, the Edmonton Oilers knocked the Vegas Golden Knights out of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in the second round.
In some ways, the Oilers’ gentleman’s sweep felt like an act of mercy. With how injured the Golden Knights seemed, ending the series in five games was like ripping off a band-aid.
Once upon a time, these Golden Knights were considered one of the top teams in the Western Conference. With those expectations in mind, losing in five games is the very definition of a fall from grace.
So, what went wrong?
In the coming days, there will be fingers to point and plenty of blame to go around. That’s what the offseason is all about, after all. But in the end, no singular issue sealed the Golden Knights’ fate. Rather, it was death by a thousand cuts– admittedly, some larger than others.
So, with the Game 5 loss still fresh, let’s take a look at everything that went wrong during the postseason. Because, as shocking as how swift the dispatch at the hands of the Oilers was, the writing was on the wall.
Mistakes, Mistakes, Mistakes
Right from the start of the postseason, the Golden Knights made uncharacteristic mistakes. They turned the puck over in the defensive zone. They turned the puck over in the offensive zone. The Golden Knights turned the puck over in– okay, you get it. They turned the puck over quite a bit.
When the Golden Knights struggled during the regular season, it was usually because they weren’t taking care of the puck. They ended the season on a high, winning 11 of their last 15 games, and it looked like they left that issue in the rearview mirror.
As it turns out, the Golden Knights did not, in fact, leave that particular issue in the rearview mirror.
Defensively, the Golden Knights did a fantastic job of keeping the Oilers to the outside. But they struggled to limit the Oilers’ transition offense and looked painfully slow against the likes of Connor McDavid, Connor Brown, and Vasily Podkolzin.
And then there were the struggles in front of their net. The Golden Knights, known for their tough backend, looked like they were running a net-front vacation resort at times during the postseason.
Yes, Alex Pietrangelo and Brayden McNabb were injured. But at the end of the day, that doesn’t change the fact that the Golden Knights allowed Corey Perry, Zach Hyman, and even Adam Henrique to take up temporary residence in Adin Hill’s crease.
Depth Scoring
Before we get into the goaltending woes, I’m going to address the biggest reason that the Oilers took a 2-0 lead in the series. It’s simple: their depth forwards were better than those playing for the Golden Knights.
After a career season where he scored 23 goals, Brett Howden was held pointless against the Oilers. Tanner Pearson recorded no points. Brandon Saad played well until he was injured, but he didn’t crack the scoresheet either. Nic Roy scored one goal.
If you factor out Game 4 against the Minnesota Wild, Ivan Barbashev didn’t record a single point in the ten other postseason games.
All season, the Golden Knights beat people with their depth scoring. As a team, they scored the fifth-most goals in the league and the third-most in the Western Conference. They got big goals from all over the lineup, proven by their regular season record.
But because of their postseason exit, that’s not what people will remember.
Maybe they overperformed in the regular season. Howden almost certainly did. Barbashev and William Karlsson didn’t, but when the lights were brightest, Karlsson stepped up, and Barbashev faded away.
The Oilers, on the other hand, got three goals and four points from Corey Perry, who turns 40 on Friday. Vasily Podkolzin had a goal and an assist. Adam Henrique scored twice. And Kasperi Kapanen, who the Oilers claimed off of waivers, scored the series-clinching goal.
There’s no other way to spell it out. The Golden Knights were supposed to have a clear-cut advantage with depth scoring; instead, they got next to none.
That’s just not good enough.
Goaltending Inconsistencies
Okay. I don’t think we can avoid this one for any longer. Adin Hill didn’t have a good series. He didn’t have a good postseason, for that matter. Hill, known for his improbable postseason run to capture the Golden Knights their first Stanley Cup in 2023, couldn’t get it done this time.
Statistically, Hill was one of the worst goaltenders this postseason. His -4.2 GSAx was ahead of only Connor Hellebuyck. During the Stanley Cup Playoffs, an average save percentage of .887 usually isn’t good enough to win.
Now, that being said, Hill in no way lost the Golden Knights the series against the Edmonton Oilers.
He was bad in Game 1 and Game 2— big whoop. When you give the Oilers as much easy offense as the Golden Knights did in those games, they’ll make even the best goaltenders pay.
Hill was good enough in Game 3. Was he the reason the Golden Knights won? No– those honors go to William Karlsson and the hero Reilly Smith. But he made some big saves.
I actually thought Hill was fine in Game 4. Evander Kane’s goal was a bit of a softie, but at the end of the day, he held the Oilers to three goals. Giving up three goals isn’t so bad against that high-flying offense with all that firepower.
In Game 5, Hill was near perfect. Was the eventual game-winner his fault? I honestly couldn’t tell you. But he held the Oilers to just one goal through 67 minutes of hockey. That should have been enough to win.
But it wasn’t.
No, Adin Hill wasn’t at his best. But at the end of the day, the Golden Knights exited the playoffs after playing 127+ minutes of scoreless hockey against Stuart Skinner.
An Unacceptably Stunted Offense
The Golden Knights’ season didn’t just end with back-to-back shutouts. Their season ended with back-to-back shutouts at the hand of Stuart Skinner– Stuart Skinner, who allowed 11 goals in two games against the Los Angeles Kings.
It wasn’t just the depth players– the stars are just as complicit.
Jack Eichel had 10 points in 11 postseason games, but scored just one goal– and that came against the Minnesota Wild. Tomáš Hertl, the Golden Knights’ third-leading scorer during the regular season, didn’t record a point against the Oilers. Pavel Dorofeyev, their regular season leading goalscorer, lit the lamp just once in the playoffs.
After a regular season where the Golden Knights scored the fifth-most goals in the league, their offense dried up when it was needed the most.
That, above all else, is the hardest pill to swallow. Up and down the lineup, so many players had career years. Brett Howden. Pavel Dorofeyev. Mark Stone. Shea Theodore. Jack Eichel. How many of them can you confidently say can replicate their seasons offensively?
Maybe Brett Howden has another 20-goal campaign in him. Maybe.
Pavel Dorofeyev certainly has room to grow, but asking him to replicate this season is a tall order. Contrary to common belief, 35-goal scorers don’t exactly grow on trees.
Jack Eichel and Shea Theodore are still in their prime. But can they repeat the success they had this year? Can they surpass it? Only time will tell.
But Mark Stone, now 33, will be a year older. So, too, will Alex Pietrangelo (35), Brayden McNabb (34), and William Karlsson (32). If Reilly Smith is brought back– he absolutely should be– he’ll be 35 next April.
The Golden Knights aren’t getting any younger. They have some cap space but no real tradeable assets. This team will probably look very similar to the team that takes the ice in Game 1 of the 2025-26 regular season.
So, ending the season with 127 minutes of scoreless hockey against Stuart Skinner isn’t a good sign. It means that, offensively, the Golden Knights simply aren’t good enough.
Whether that changes over the offseason is completely in the hands of general manager Kelly McCrimmon.
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