Golden Knights Still Lamenting Missed Opportunity
The Vegas Golden Knights are struggling to come to terms with a lost opportunity that has left them more despondent than ever. Unlike the typical reaction of teams who fail to make a deep postseason run, the Golden Knights aren’t hitting the golf course but instead are stuck in a state of regret, reminiscent of fishermen lamenting the big one that got away.
“I believe it’s the best team we’ve ever had in Vegas,” stated GM Kelly McCrimmon about the 2023-24 Golden Knights. “Talking to our players, there was a consistent message of a real feeling of missed opportunity, a lost opportunity, when you’ve got a team this good.”
This sentiment is shared throughout the team. Captain Mark Stone echoed McCrimmon’s thoughts, expressing the collective disappointment. “Definitely felt like we had a team that could win a championship,” Stone said.
A Special Season That Could Have Been
Forward Jonathan Marchessault, a fixture in Vegas since the team’s inception, was confident this group had the potential to achieve something extraordinary. In the past three decades, only the Pittsburgh Penguins have managed to repeat as Stanley Cup champions, accomplishing this feat twice—in 1990-91 and 1991-92, and again in 2015-16 and 2016-17.
Marchessault believed this Golden Knights squad had the potential to join that elite group. “We’ve never had a stacked lineup like that,” he remarked. “I really feel like we missed an opportunity here.”
Defenseman Alex Pietrangelo, a key player in the Golden Knights’ Cup win last season and a previous Cup winner with the St. Louis Blues in 2018-19, also saw championship qualities in this team. Their early exit against the Dallas Stars in the first round of the playoffs was particularly bitter.
“You only have so many opportunities with good teams,” Pietrangelo said. “I’ve been fortunate to be on a lot of good teams, so it’s frustrating when we don’t get an opportunity to capitalize.”
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Mixed Assessments Within the Team
Not all players are in complete agreement, though. Goaltender Adin Hill acknowledged the potential but pointed out that the team failed to gel when it mattered most.
“I feel like we never got to where our game can be,” Hill observed. “Last year, we saw what we can do in this locker room. I think you can argue we might have had a better team on paper this year. We didn’t play the same way on the ice, I don’t believe.”
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This collective reflection underscores the deep disappointment felt by the Golden Knights, who recognize the rare chance they had and the significant opportunity that slipped through their fingers.
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