When the Arizona Coyotes announced their relocation to Salt Lake City, Utah, to be honest, I didn’t know what my coverage would look like moving forward. The team I’d been covering for the past year (and following for the previous five years) would no longer be a team, and Arizona would be left without an NHL franchise for the first time since 1995.
As the season grew closer, I was excited about what could come with the Utah Hockey Club. It was a new era, which made me eager for things to get going. As this season has gone along, they haven’t been my focus; it’s been with the Arizona State University Sun Devils, being credentialed for each home series, which, as a whole, has been a treat to cover them.
Related: A New Hope: Galvin Restores Hope in a Potential Arizona Hockey Return
So that then brings the question, why cover the Vegas Golden Knights? When I sat down to think about it, there was excitement in covering the team, and its proximity to Arizona won me over. As the NHL season approaches late January, Vegas sees itself in second place in the Pacific Division and third in the Western Conference, behind only the Edmonton Oilers and Winnipeg Jets.
Alex Pietrangelo Backs Out of 4 Nations Face-Off
The NHL’s Four Nations Face-Off will debut this season, replacing the NHL’s traditional All-Star Game. Recently, news broke that Alex Pietrangelo won’t participate in the tournament, as he was previously selected to Team Canada. The 35-year-old defenseman is said to be dealing with an undisclosed injury despite the two-time Stanley Cup champion playing Sunday night against the Florida Panthers.
Typically, players who opted out of the All-Star Game in previous seasons were required to miss one game immediately following the event. However, NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daley said that would not apply to players who opt out of the 4 Nations Face-Off.
Pietrangelo is the first player to opt out of the event while still actively playing for his NHL team. This isn’t a great look for the 4 Nations Face-Off, as this could be the first of many players who opt out, but only time will tell.
In the meantime, Pietrangelo will continue playing big minutes for the Golden Knights as one of the team’s top defensemen.
Golden Knights Quarter-Century Team Revealed
The quarter-century team for the Golden Knights was revealed earlier last week. The First Team forwards included Jack Eichel, William Karlsson, and Mark Stone. All three have won Stanley Cups in Vegas, and Karlsson has been with the team since their inaugural season in 2017.
The defense and goaltending have no surprises with Pietrangelo, Shea Theodore, and Adin Hill. Similar to Karlsson, Theodore has been with the team since 2017 and is one of two players from the inaugural team on the First Team.
The Second Team has some older faces, with the forwards consisting of Jonathan Marchessault, Reilly Smith, and Chandler Stephenson. On defense are Alec Martinez, Brayden McNabb, and future Hall of Fame goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury.
All of the players on the Quarter-Centruy team won a Stanley Cup with Vegas, other than Fleury, who was close in 2018 but fell short against the Capitals.
February Quickly Approaching
As we end the month of January, it hasn’t been the best month of hockey, but it also hasn’t been the worst. This month, they’re 6-6-1 and are also second in the Pacific Division, behind the Edmonton Oilers by a point. The Golden Knights also see themselves in fourth place in the league behind the Oilers, Capitals and Winnipeg Jets. The trade deadline is approaching soon, so these next handful of games are critical. The Golden Knights take on the Dallas Stars today at 7 p.m. Pacific Standard Time.
