Jack Eichel, Mark Stone highlight Golden Knights’ NHL quarter-century team

On Sunday, the NHL revealed the Vegas Golden Knights’ quarter-century team.

As you’d expect, most of the players featured on the “roster” were on the 2023 Stanley Cup Championship team.

The first team is headlined by forwards Jack Eichel, William Karlsson and Mark Stone. Defensemen Alex Pietrangelo and Shea Theodore were also on that team with goaltender Adin Hill.

Karlsson was one of the “Golden Misfits” that came to the team in 2017. “Wild Bill” is second in team history in goals (159), assists (225) and points (384). He also won the Lady Byng Trophy during the team’s expansion season in 2017-18.

Eichel has been a game-changer since being acquired by the Golden Knights from the Buffalo Sabres in 2022. He led the team in points during the 2023 playoffs, scoring 26 points on the way to the Cup.

Stone, who became the first captain in franchise history in 2021, was the first player in franchise history to lift Lord Stanley, battling through injury to be a key player during the championship season.

Theodore was another member of the inaugural roster who saw the fruits of his labor pay off two seasons ago. The two-way blueliner is the franchise leader in assists, leading all Vegas blueliners in goals and points.

Pietrangelo brought in a winning pedigree when he came to the franchise in 2020 and made an immediate impact, currently second in Golden Knights history in goals, assists and points.

Hill became the feel-good story of the 2023 playoffs, taking over the starting reins in the second round. He ended up playing masterfully en route to the Stanley Cup. Hill posted an 11-4 record with a 2.17 goals-against average, a .932 save percentage and two shutouts.

The second team features more Cup champions, including forwards Jonathan Marchessault, Reilly Smith and Chandler Stephenson, along with defensemen Alec Martinez and Brayden McNabb.

Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury is the only outlier from the group. The first pick from the 2017 Expansion Draft helped put the franchise on the map thanks to being one of the top goaltenders in the NHL, leading the team to the Final in its first season. He also won the Vezina Trophy in 2021. Though it’s been a few years since he was a Golden Knight, Flower is still the franchise’s leader in wins (117), games played (192) and shutouts (23).

Marchessault and Smith both have since moved on since winning the Cup, but these two “Golden Misfits” were impact players over their tenure with the team. Marchessault, the Conn Smythe Trophy winner in 2023, is the all-time leader in goals (192) and points (417) during the regular season. Smith was a secondary scorer, adding 124 goals during the regular season with another 66 points coming in the postseason.

Stephenson was a key addition to the Golden Knights roster and played a pivotal role in winning the Cup.

Martinez and McNabb were two of the most-worked blueliners over the team’s young history. Martinez came to the team after already having won two Cups with the Los Angeles Kings. Yet, he added another layer to a stacked team. McNabb, who had been with the team since day one, is the franchise’s all-time leader in games played (539) during the regular season.