Assuming owner Bill Foley’s final expansion payment goes through as expected by early March, the Vegas Golden Knights will be able to make trades right away. As Puck Daddy’s Greg Wyshynski points out though, there will be some restrictions early on.
GM George McPhee will not able to acquire any active player off an NHL roster. However, he can still trade for draft picks, unsigned prospects, plus make any agreements pertaining to the expansion draft. They’ll also be allowed to sign college free agents and it wouldn’t be surprising to see them active in that market early on.
NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly also told Wyshynski that while the name Golden Knights is currently under scrutiny in terms of a potential trademarking issue, the name won’t be changed although the process of getting that resolved is likely to take some time.
More news and notes from around the NHL:
- It’s rare for an everyday player to have not taken a single penalty by this point of the season. It’s even rarer for a defenseman to be in that situation but as Robert Tychkowski of the Edmonton Sun notes, that is the case for Oilers blueliner Oscar Klefbom, who has to be whistled for a penalty through 51 games. Head coach Todd McLellan attributes Klefbom’s high-end skating as a big reason for him being able to stay out of the box. This isn’t just a one-time fluke either; Klefbom had only recorded ten penalty minutes in 107 games heading into this season. His last penalty came back on November 18, 2015, a hooking minor against Columbus.
- The Flames plan to employ a ‘win and you’re in’ strategy when it comes to their goaltending for the foreseeable future, reports Wes Gilbertson of the Calgary Sun. Brian Elliott and Chad Johnson have been consistently inconsistent for most of the season and as a result, Calgary finds themselves in a tight battle for a Wild Card spot in the West. Elliott, having picked up a win in their last game before the break, will get the nod against the Wild tonight.
- If the Red Wings are going to make a real run at extending their 25 year playoff streak, it will have to be on the back of their power play, Ted Kulfan of The Detroit News suggests. Detroit finds themselves with the worst man advantage in the league coming out of the break with a success rate of just 11.1%, a number that drops to just 5.7% on the road.