3 reasons the Vegas Golden Knights won't repeat in 2024

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The Vegas Golden Knights are the Stanley Cup Champions. It has been an incredible run for them during their time as a franchise which isn’t really that long at all.

In year one, they made it all the way to the Final which was incredible. They lost to the Washington Capitals in five games but it felt like a team that was always going to thrive.

They then finally got back in 2023 and didn’t fail this time. They defeated the red-hot Florida Panthers to get the job done. It was incredible to watch.

Coming into 2023-24, they want to repeat. They put themselves into position each year by making smart roster moves so nobody thinks they won’t be in the mix. However, they won’t repeat for this reason:

1. The West Teams

The Western Conference teams are getting hard for the Vegas Golden Knights.

The Vegas Golden Knights managed to get through the Western Conference in the playoffs last year. That was an incredible accomplishment that they should be proud of.

The West isn’t as strong as the East in terms of depth but the top teams in the conference are incredible. The four or five best teams in the West are just as good as the four or five best teams in the East.

Just because the West doesn’t really have an 8th seed going to the Final for a while doesn’t mean it is a bad conference at the peak of the playoffs.

Vegas is going to have to battle that this year. The Edmonton Oilers, Dallas Stars, Colorado Avalanche, and Los Angeles Kings all pose a tremendous threat. The odds of Vegas escaping again are low.

Even if they somehow did again, it would be more grueling and then they’d have to face the East winner which won’t be easy either. Doing that twice in a row is very hard.

Connor Hellebuyck #37, Winnipeg Jets (Photo by Candice Ward/Getty Images) /

2. There will be a target on their back

The target on the back of the Vegas Golden Knights will be big in 2023-24.

When you are the defending Stanley Cup champions, everyone is gunning for you. Everyone wants to beat you. As a result, you are playing everyone in the league at the top of their game.

Although Vegas is more talented than most teams, that can wear them down over the course of a full season and then the playoffs. Everyone wants to take down the champs.

Repeating as the Stanley Cup champion is very hard and this reason is one of the biggest issues. Nobody takes a shift off when they know the champs are coming in.

For Vegas, they have had a target on their back for a while since coming into the league but nothing will compare to what they are about to face.

Now, people know that the first year wasn’t a beginner’s luck type of fluke. This team is dangerous and the other 31 teams want to get on their level.

Vegas Golden Knights, Reilly Smith #19. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

3. Reilly Smith is gone

The Vegas Golden Knights will not have Reilly Smith on their team anymore.

The Vegas Golden Knights are incredibly deep down the middle of the ice. That was one of the biggest reasons that they were able to win the Stanley Cup in 2023.

With Jack Eichel, Chandler Stephenson, William Karlsson, and Nicholas Roy at center, only a few teams in the league roll four lines with better centers.

They also have tons of good wingers like Mark Stone, Ivan Barbashev, and Jonathan Marchessault. However, they are now missing a player on the wing that meant a lot to the team.

One of the original golden misfits, Reilly Smith, has moved on. He is now a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins following the Stanley Cup victory. Those things happen to champions from time to time.

Replacing a guy that scored over 20 goals and 50 points is not easy. That is what the Knights are losing in Smith. Taking a hit like that will make winning the whole thing even harder, especially when they were as great in the playoffs as Smith was.

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