Better linemates and more playing time should propel Golden Knights winger Pavel Dorofeyev far beyond his fantasy projections.
The Vegas Golden Knights have been in the playoffs for seven of their eight seasons since being established with one Stanley Cup already under their belt. They have since won just one round of the playoffs and have made aggressive moves to try and get back in the contender picture like adding superstar winger Mitch Marner.
After being swiftly eliminated in five games at the hands of the Edmonton Oilers this past postseason, the Golden Knights are ready for their comeback with one player rising above the rest as a must-add going into the season.
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Marner will be reportedly joining Vegas' top line alongside Jack Eichel. The duo have a combined 345 assists, meaning whoever their winger is will likely find the back of the net more often than not. The man expected to join the high-flying duo is none other than 24-year-old Russian winger Pavel Dorofeyev, coming off a breakout season in which he tallied an impressive 35 goals, ranking in the top 25 league-wide, ahead of stars like Auston Matthews, Sidney Crosby, and Nathan MacKinnon.
Despite this accomplishment, Yahoo only has Dorofeyev projected to score 30 goals, which doesn't make sense as he is massively improving in terms of talent around him after playing with Tomas Hertl and Brandon Saad for most of the time last season. Like Edmonton's Zach Hyman, Dorofeyev will likely find his goal numbers closer to 40-50 goals due to the players on his lines being elite playmakers like Hyman has with Connor McDavid.
Dorofeyev's minutes with Marner and Eichel will certainly translate to more points than his 52 he put up last season plus he will be getting more time on the Golden Knights top power play unit. Working from the blueline, he will get to dish the puck off to his new linemates as well as up the middle to Hertl, who will be slotted at centre. He can also move the puck across the line to Shea Theodore, all while on the man advantage.
His 52 points last season will look small compared to the 65-70 points he will likely put up in his favorable situation. He will also be entering the season after finishing the season on a solid hot streak with 21 goals and ten assists for 31 points over his final 41 games. His scoring numbers during that span were on par with the likes of Leon Draisaitl, William Nylander and Filip Forsberg.
Yahoo currently ranks Dorofeyev outside the top 323 players, highlighting how underrated his sky-high potential remains. While he doesn't contribute much in hits or blocked shots, his value lies in scoring, especially goals and power play points. He also stands to benefit significantly from playing alongside elite talents like Eichel, who posted a +32 rating last season (sixth-best among NHL forwards), and Marner, who had a +18 (top 29 in the league).
Dorofeyev’s own +2 rating from last season should rise sharply and his shots on goal should also improve after being set up for more open looks. It should overall culminate in a better profile for a player that will massively improve since last season.
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