Elegy of Cheaters and Rogues

At least you'll have WrestleMania, Vegas, because you're not getting another Stanley Cup.

It's fitting that the Vegas Golden Knights suffered a first-round exit, because it was this fate that led me to start despising this team in the first place. We all remember this. In 2019, the Golden Knights, in their second year in play, were up 3-1 over the San Jose Sharks. Sharks won Games Five and Six, but in Game Seven, Vegas was up 3-0. Then Joe Pavelski's head was targeted. Five minute major. Four goals scored by the Sharks. Vegas tied it, but SJ won it in OT. The Knights fans bitched. The Knights themselves bitched. Over a rightfully called major penalty.

"The refs cost us that game," they said. No. Joe Pavelski's head being targeted cost you that game. I heard the league actually apologized to Vegas. Seriously?!

And that started a series of entitled behavior and temper tantrums from the team and the fans. Back-to-back Final Four exits resulting in Vegas fans picking on backup goaltender Robin Lehner and scapegoating him for the losses, while ignoring the fact that Marc-Andre Fleury--as good as he is--was faulty. Fans actually having the gall to bitch about the officiating, despite the fact that literally every call went Vegas' way during the 2021 playoffs, which still saw them ousted by a Canadiens team who (many say) had no business winning one playoff game, let alone thirteen of them.

And then, it happened. 2021-22 saw the Vegas Golden Knights miss the playoffs for the first time in franchise history. Boy, did we celebrate! We had fun! Though, part of me thought, "You know, they're going to get payback next year." And they did. All they was win the Stanley Cup. Of course, it helped that a lot of other real teams were out of the way.

As for this season, it was up and down for the most part. They had a strong start, until they didn't. They had a few injuries, or two. Speaking of that:

Remember when Mark Stone was likable? So apparently, Stone was injured for so long and placed on LTIR, but as we all know, he was healthy for over a month. Despite this, we never him...until we see video of him practicing right after Vegas clinches a playoff spot. How bloody convenient. Leave it to Vegas to try to skirt around the cap. They want to be the NHL's Houston Astros so damn badly. And the salt was even thicker when Stone scored very early in Game One. Vegas dominated the Dallas Stars in the first two games in Dallas.

However, just before we were all about to channel our inner Jesse Pinkman ("They can't keep getting away with it!"), a funny thing happened: Dallas won four of their next five games.

Regarding stats, Jack Eichel was the only one getting a point per game. Seven games, seven points (3 G/4 A). Jonathan Marchessault, last year's Conn Smythe winner, had four points (2 G/2 A), and regarding the "fast-healing" Mark Stone: three points, all goals. Logan Thompson and Adin Hill were both used in net; Thompson won Games One and Two, while Hill had the shutout win in Game Six. The numbers were pretty decent, so goaltending was not a problem.

The only thing that beat the Golden Knights in the playoffs (other than the Stars) was karma. Sweet, wonderful karma. We all know what they say about karma...and it really hits hard during the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

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