Not that the Las Vegas Golden Knights don’t have enough to do over the next few days, from going through the protection rosters, to making side deals, to participate in the NHL draft and then announce their team by June 21, but the team also needs to start thinking about free agents as well. The team has an exclusive window to negotiate with any unrestricted free agents. While the team has already inked KHL center Vadim Shipachyov to a free agent contract, more signings are sure to come. But who are their best options?
The Hockey News’ Jared Clinton has several suggestions of players the Golden Knights should consider to bolster their team for their initial season, including Arizona’s Radim Vrbata, Calgary’s Michael Stone, Washington’s Karl Alzner, Philadelphia’s Michael Del Zotto as well as San Jose’s Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau.
The scribe argues that Vrbata might be an easy choice. Although contents of the protection rosters won’t be known until tomorrow morning, Arizona is expected to provide very little in terms of available players on their roster. So going after one of the Coyotes free agents may have more meaning than a fringe prospect. Enter Vrbata. The 36 winger could be the perfect linemate for Shipachyov as he put up a 20-goal season for Arizona last season and is two years removed from a 31-goal season. And at age 36, Vrbata might come at a shorter deal than some other free agent options.
Both Thornton and Marleau are options as well. While both are expected to look for their best chance to chase a Stanley Cup, it’s conceivably possible that Las Vegas could convince one of them to be the face of the franchise. Thornton is coming off a 50-point season at age 37, but put up 82 points just the year before that. Marleau, on the other hand, had 27 goals last year and could also be a nice fit alongside Shipachyov. Also at age 37, Marleau hasn’t slowed down yet.
The rest of the suggestions that Clinton gives are blueliners, which may not be that important to the Golden Knights considering that many feel that the expansion draft will be loaded with defensive talent, but few quality forward options. Alzner was originally drafted by Las Vegas general manager George McPhee when he was with the Capitals and he could be the leader of the defense for a number of years. The 28-year-old Alzner is one of the top two free agent defensemen available (next to teammate Kevin Shattenkirk) and his defensive style might be a perfect fit in Las Vegas. The downside to Alzner is the team would lose the ability to use an expansion pick on a top prospect such as goaltender Philipp Grubauer or defenseman Nate Schmidt if they sign Alzner, so that option is not as likely.
Stone could be a good addition to the roster if they opt not to go after Alzner. Stone has been a solid top-4 defenseman for both Calgary this year and Arizona before that. Stone is more of a two-way player and might be able to provide some much-needed offense. He had just three goals and 12 assists in 64 games this year between the two teams, but had six goals and 39 points one year ago. Del Zotto is more than capable of providing offense for the Golden Knights. While not a defensive player, he’s had several good seasons, but injuries have often curtailed his career.
The only way I’d lose my ability to take a capital player is if I signed shattenkirk or Oshie, not alzner