Vegas Golden Knights Christmas Wishlist Top-4 Needs

Merry Christmas, Everyone. Things are, thankfully, going a lot better here. God bless everyone.

The Western-Conference leading Vegas Golden Knights are off for a few days for the Holiday Break. I don't know if you can recall, but they were in this same position last year thanks to an unusual COVID schedule. The Golden Knights sat comfortably atop the Pacific Division standings as they had plenty of games at hand but then allowed other teams to catch them in the standings and inevitably missed the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

For the VGK, their no. 1 Christmas wish is not to go down that same path in 2023. But given that the only games canceled this season have been due to weather and Bridgestone Arena's plumbing, things should be all good. But what else could the VGK wish for this Holiday Season?

Heath and Wealth

Every team in the NHL can wish for a healthy roster, so the Golden Knights are no different. They are currently without Jack Eichel, Shea Theodore, Zach Whitecloud, Brett Howden, and Paul Cotter.

Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy listed Eichel as day-to-day, Whitecloud as month-to-month, and Shea Theodore as week-to-week on Dec. 13th. Cotter has been out since he took a bit hit on Dec. 15 against Jared Tinordi of the Chicago Blackhawks. Howden has been on LTIR since Dec. 8th.

It goes without saying that the VGK will be a better team with guys like Theodore and Eichel in their lineup.

Turning the Corner at Home

With back-to-back wins at home, it seems as if the Golden Knights can start to scratch off their wish of having a more consistent home winning record at T-Mobile Arena. Prior to the team's last two home games, the VGK only had one regulation home win in eight games. They were struggling to score, but with back-to-back five-goal performances at home, it seems as if the Golden Knights have turned the corner at home.

And they did so just at the right time, with eight of their next eleven games coming at the Fortress.

Goaltending to Work Itself Out

It's less of an issue and more of a good problem to have, but with Laurent Brossoit now healthy and performing well, the Golden Knight's upper management will be tasked with making a tough goaltending decision in the near future.

In short, the organization has three capable NHL goaltenders with, Brossoit, Logan Thompson, and Adin Hill. With opportunities to get back in the NHL, cap space, and an open starting goaltender job available with Robin Lehner, unfortunately out for the season, a lot could happen.

We'll have to continue to keep an eye on all three goaltenders' play and await a likely move from general manager Kelly McCrimmon.

Depth Scoring

Injuries have shined a light on the lack of depth scoring that the Golden Knights organization has. Head coach Bruce Cassidy has gone on record stating that depth players in the team's lineup need to step up and do more.

Perhaps this could entice general manager McCrimmon to go after a scoring forward on the NHL trade market, such as Bo Horvat.