After winning their inaugural Stanley Cup championship at the conclusion of the 2023 postseason, there was widespread speculation as to whether the Vegas Golden Knights would suffer from a title hangover this year. That certainly wasn't the case in the early going; the Knights won 11 of their first 12 games, looking like an absolute force in the process. They quickly earned the top spot in National Hockey League standings, and the way things were going, it looked like it might be a two-horse race between them and the Boston Bruins for the President's Trophy.
But the wheels have started to fall off in the month of November. After two convincing victories over the Winnipeg Jets and Colorado Avalanche, Vegas has lost eight of their last 11 games, giving up the top spot in the league — and on ClutchPoints' weekly NHL Power Rankings. That cold stretch has the Knights 14-5-4, and they hold a precarious one point lead on the Vancouver Canucks for the top spot in the Pacific Division.
Vegas is too talented not to turn things around, but it looks like a delayed Stanley Cup hangover is indeed being seen in Nevada. The team is really struggling to score goals, and has only potted 10 in their last six games — five of them losses. The Knights have been shut out twice over the last two weeks, and the lines have been put in a blender to try to rectify the issue. No longer are Conn Smythe trophy winner Jonathan Marchessault and premier offensive talent Jack Eichel playing together; it is Mark Stone occupying the 1RW slot as coach Bruce Cassidy looks to get his troops going.
The lack of goals is certainly concerning, and it doesn't help that the Golden Knights' best offensive defenseman — and one of the best players on the team, period — just went down with a disappointing injury.
Shea Theodore on the shelf
Shea Theodore will be out of the lineup for the foreseeable future after the star blueliner underwent surgery for an upper-body injury earlier this week. The 28-year-old sustained the ailment in a 2-1 win over the Dallas Stars on Nov. 22 and has not played since. The team has labelled him week-to-week, which is obviously a brutal blow.
Theodore has been absolutely fantastic for Vegas this year; he's accounted for four goals and 18 points in 2023-24, adding a plus-10 rating along with the impressive point totals. His career-highs are 14 goals and 52 points, which he seemed poised to shatter before the disappointing injury.
Theodore's ailment is even more concerning considering the lack of offense the rest of the D-core provides. Alex Pietrangelo doesn't have a point in his last eight games, while none of Brayden McNabb, Nicolas Hague, Zach Whitecloud or anyone else on the blue line is especially known for his offensive flair. For that reason, the Knights should look into trading for a powerplay quarterback, and should look no further than Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Sean Walker.
Sean Walker fill in for Shea Theodore?
Although I was tempted to consider Carolina Hurricanes' polarizing defenseman Tony DeAngelo as a fill-in on the first powerplay unit, it doesn't seem likely that Knights GM Kelly McCrimmon would consider bringing in that type of player. For that reason, Flyers' Sean Walker could instead be the tonic for a Las Vegas team that needs to start scoring goals.
Walker is ranked No. 5 on The Athletic's first trade board of the season, and the hockey insider is high on the 29-year-old.
“Acquired from the Kings over the summer as cap relief in a three-way trade that included Columbus, Walker has been a revelation in Philadelphia. The right-shot defenseman is playing over 20 minutes per night and putting up offensive numbers at a career-best rate,” wrote insider Chris Johnston this week.
“Known throughout his NHL career as a player who likes to join the attack, Walker seems to have struck a nice balance since joining the Flyers. The team is consistently carrying the play offensively when he’s been on the ice at five-on-five. Walker is also playing on an affordable (and expiring) contract, which should make him an asset that Philadelphia can flip in the coming months.”
Philadelphia might be taking a wait-and-see approach considering they are fighting for a playoff berth in the Eastern Conference, but Walker has emerged into one of their best trade chips. He has already usurped Travis Sanheim as the powerplay quarterback, and he's produced an impressive 10 points in 22 games for the black and orange.
Sean Walker could not only be helpful to Vegas now, but also move the needle on PP2 once Theodore returns. Depending on his value and how long Theodore ends up being out, the Golden Knights and Flyers could make good trade partners in 2023-24.
The Golden Knights need to beat the visiting Canucks on Thursday night, or else Vancouver will vault Las Vegas for the top spot in the Pacific Division. Regardless of what the plan is with Shea Theodore out, this team needs to start scoring goals, and fast.
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