Victor Olofsson left Las Vegas looking for a fresh start. A little more than a year later, after stops in Colorado and Calgary, he has found himself right back where it all began.
The former Colorado Avalanche forward is once again a member of the Vegas Golden Knights, returning to the organization he left in free agency after the 2024-25 season. What followed was a whirlwind stretch that included 60 games in Colorado, the birth of his second child, a trade to Calgary and, ultimately, another opportunity in the desert.
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Olofsson’s wife, Taylor, gave birth to the couple’s second child during the Olympic break. Just over a week later, Olofsson was on the move, joining the Flames in the trade that sent Nazem Kadri back to Colorado.
Before that trade, Olofsson had put together a productive season with the Avalanche. He scored 11 goals and added 14 assists for 25 points in 60 games, including the first hat trick of his NHL career on Oct. 28.
Olofsson after recording his first hat trick as an NHL player. Credit: Isaiah J. Downing – Imagn Images
His time in Calgary was considerably shorter. Olofsson finished with two goals and four assists in 18 games before free agency provided a familiar opportunity.
Vegas signed him to a one-year contract on July 1, bringing him back to the organization where he first experienced playoff hockey.
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“I had a great time here last time around,” Olofsson told Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter Danny Webster. “When the opportunity came, it felt like an easy choice. It was nice and quick. Happy to be back.”
There is also a new set of wheels waiting for him.
Cadillac of Las Vegas recently shared a photo of Olofsson picking up a brand-new Cadillac Escalade, posing alongside presumably the salesman.
What better way to celebrate a return to the city of “lost wages” than by buying a brand-new car?
The Escalade is new. The opportunity in Vegas isn’t.
Olofsson’s first stint with the Golden Knights began with plenty of promise. He scored three goals in his first four games before a lower-body injury in October forced him to miss nearly two months.
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This time, the circumstances could be different.
“I was a little bit in and out there the last time I was here,” Olofsson said. “I had a lot of good looks and chances, too, so we’ll see what happens this year. I’m ready for whatever and I’m excited.”
That is perhaps the biggest difference between Olofsson’s first run with Vegas and his return. He has experienced another NHL organization, another trade and another season of trying to establish himself in a new environment.
Colorado was supposed to be a significant part of that next chapter.
Instead, Olofsson’s time with the Avalanche ended before he could see the season through, with the veteran forward eventually becoming part of the trade that brought Kadri back to Denver.
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Still, his 25-point season in Colorado gave him another productive stretch offensively, while his time in Vegas had already shown him what it is like to play for a team with Stanley Cup aspirations.
That experience appears to have remained important to him.
“The guys in the room, a lot of guys have won it one time and came close last year, too,” Olofsson said. “That’s the ultimate goal.”
For Olofsson, that goal was a major reason the decision to return to Vegas came together so quickly.
“That’s why I wanted to come back, too, was to win the Cup,” Olofsson said. “It’s always a team that’s in contention every year.”
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Olofsson began his NHL career with the Buffalo Sabres after being selected 181st overall in the 2014 NHL Draft. He spent six seasons in Buffalo, including a 28-goal campaign in 2022-23, before eventually moving on to Vegas.
Since leaving Buffalo, Olofsson has played for Vegas, Colorado and Calgary, giving him three different stops before ultimately bringing him back to the Golden Knights. His chapter with the Avalanche lasted just one season, but it became another part of an NHL career that has taken several unexpected turns.
Now, after everything that has changed since he first left Vegas, Olofsson has another opportunity with an organization he already knows and a goal that has remained the same: winning the Stanley Cup.
And if his return to the desert needed one final touch, a brand-new hot rod isn’t a bad way to start the next chapter.
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