In what will be his final development camp with the Vegas Golden Knights, prospect Jakub Demek hopes to refine his game enough to make his NHL debut next year. In a write-up from Paul Delos Santos of the NHL, it was made clear that Demek is ready to be a leader both on and off the ice with the Golden Knights organization.
He was originally drafted 128th overall by Vegas in the 2021 NHL Draft and participated in his first professional season last year. The Golden Knights have a requirement that its prospects participate in development camp after their first full professional season and Demek quickly became one of the group’s leaders. This is one of the main pillars of Vegas’ development path as director of player development, Will Nichol, remarked, “[When you’re at your last developmental camp], there’s that last piece of development — leadership. That’s a huge part of the development as you keep passing the baton on with culture“.
Demek suited up in 55 games for the organization’s AHL affiliate in Henderson last year where he scored seven goals and 16 points. The Golden Knights recalled Demek from the AHL last year in late February but he did not make his NHL debut. The young Slovakian still has a few key developmental items to take care of before he becomes a full-time member of Vegas’ roster but that is where he is aiming for the 2024-25 NHL season.