The Vegas Golden Knights will have another representative at the upcoming All-Star festivities, as Chandler Stephenson has been named the replacement for Matty Beniers. Beniers will not be able to attend because of injury.
Stephenson joins Logan Thompson (and head coach Bruce Cassidy) on the Pacific roster and will be making his first All-Star appearance.
It’s a pretty impressive climb for a third-round pick who scored 55 total points through the first three seasons of his career (more than 200 games). After a trade brought him from the Washington Capitals to Vegas, and injuries gave him an opportunity to play with top-line players, Stephenson has never looked back.
Last season, in 79 games, he set career highs with 21 goals and 64 points. Both of those numbers are in danger this year, as the speedy center has 11 goals and 44 points through 51 games.
Stephenson is averaging close to 20 minutes a night for the Golden Knights, is winning close to 60% of his faceoffs, and is a key part of both the powerplay and the penalty kill.
For Beniers, it is a disappointing result, given he was going to be an All-Star in his first full season. The Seattle Kraken will likely get another chance down the road, given how well he has acclimated himself to the NHL in such a short time.
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