When the Dallas Stars knocked the Vegas Golden Knights out in the first round of the 2024 playoffs, the entire hockey world breathed a sigh of relief.

The Knights have been a thorn in the rest of the NHL’s side since Day 1 of their first season seven years ago, and by Year 6, they’d completed the wildest journey in the history of the sport: winning their first Stanley Cup.

But after years of building a stacked roster through aggressive transactions and, shall we say, “controversial” cap management decisions, the bill seems to be finally coming due. In June, Vegas elected not to make a competitive offer to Conn Smythe Trophy winner Jonathan Marchessault so they could reportedly make a push for Steven Stamkos. Instead, they lost both players to the Nashville Predators and came out of free agency largely empty-handed.

For the first time in their short history sharing a division, the Canucks appear poised to ice a roster that can outduel the Golden Knights. Last year Vancouver and Vegas split their four-game set, but as the Knights began to lose their grip on the Pacific’s top spot, the Canucks smelled blood and pounced.

But one thing hasn’t changed: nobody wants to face the Golden Knights on a given day. Even without Marchessault and Chandler Stephenson, having weapons like Jack Eichel, Mark Stone and recent arrival Tomas Hertl means Vegas is still plenty dangerous. The Knights defensive group is as deep as ever, with Alex Pietrangelo, Noah Hanifin and Shea Theodore anchoring a rock solid blue line. And in goal, Adin Hill’s reliable presence compliments his teammates’ aggressive scoring attack perfectly.

The only thing that’s proven to completely undo the Knights are injuries. Call Mark Stone’s time on Long Term Injured Reserve ‘a load of bull’ all you want, but that call still required Vegas to win games in the toughest part of the season without him, which they very nearly didn’t accomplish. The Golden Knights lost quite a few man games last season and it showed in their eventual wild card finish.

The Canucks have the scoring power to match the Knights, and the goaltending to surpass them. That’s why the key separator will be on defense, and whether or not Rick Tocchet’s ‘shutdown by committee’ strategy will be enough to outplay Bruce Cassidy’s more accomplished unit. Vancouver has all the tools to put their troubles against the Knights and at T-Mobile Arena behind them, but they’ll need to make a real statement to do so.

Forwards: Toss-up

The Knights are still incredibly stacked even without Marchessault and Stephenson, while the Canucks have upgraded their scoring with the addition of Jake DeBrusk. This heavyweight fight will come down to judges’ decision.

Defence: Golden Knights

The Canucks’ blue line has taken a lot of steps forward to surround Norris Trophy winner Quinn Hughes, but Vegas’ defence is arguably one of the strongest six-man units in the NHL. Shea Theodore would be a top pairing defender on most teams, but on the Knights he’s got Alex Pietrangelo in front of him.

Goaltending: Canucks

Adin Hill might be a rock-solid netminder with a Stanley Cup on his resume, but he’s not a perennial Vezina candidate like Thatcher Demko.

The Canucks will win the season series against the Golden Knights for the first time in franchise history.

December 19 @ T-Mobile Arena

February 22 @ T-Mobile Arena

April 6 @ Rogers Arena

April 16 @ Rogers Arena