Snapshots: Boeser, Rangers Black Aces, Miroshnichenko
It’s been a whirlwind of a season for the Vancouver Canucks, and perhaps even more so for Brock Boeser. As his team rose from the ashes of the late Travis Green/Jim Benning era, their collective stock pointed upwards under new coach Bruce Boudreau, Boeser himself has seen his stock as a core member of the Canucks fall to perhaps its lowest point in his professional career. As the season comes to a close, Boeser has put together a career-worst season, with only 46 points in 70 games. It’s a sharp decline from last season, when he was in strong form, posting 49 points in 56 games, and a decline that has led to his name being floated in trade rumors. The idea of trading Boeser was essentially unthinkable even just 12 months ago, but now as Boeser stands as a pending RFA with arbitration rights, a sizeable qualifying offer required to keep his services, and the ability to hit unrestricted free agency in short order, the idea has become far more realistic than it has ever been.
But as it stands, the idea of trading Boeser may be unrealistic after all, though. According to Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK TV, “everything is on the table” in terms of an extension for Boeser. Dhaliwal notes that while it once seemed as though the team would need to either commit to Boeser long-term or find a new home for him, it now seems that, as Dhaliwal puts it, “everybody is okay with even a short-term deal.” In summation, Dhaliwal reports that the Canucks “are going to work hard to try to get Boeser re-signed,” and that the possibility of a trade is “not something [he’s] hearing.” While the idea of what Boeser could return in a trade might be tantalizing, Dhaliwal’s reporting has to come as a welcome development for Canucks fans. For all the faults in his play this season, Boeser is still a young star offensive player who only last year was scoring at a near point-per-game rate. The idea of trading him was always going to be a tough sell to a devoted fanbase eagerly awaiting the team’s return to contention, and it seems like the Canucks’ management team agrees with that sentiment.
Now, for some other notes from across the NHL.
- One of the aspects of building a potential Stanley Cup-winning team that is often highly important but also somewhat under-recognized is the impact of a team’s organizational depth. A team’s organizational depth is flexed through their “black aces,” or the players who are attached to their team as they compete in the playoffs but don’t dress for games on a regular basis. They are the players who are around to be ready at a moment’s notice, and with the brutal nature of playoff hockey, it is more likely than not that a team will have to dip into their reserves of players as they go deep into the playoffs. The New York Rangers hope to be one of those teams going deep into the playoffs, and today Larry Brooks of the New York Post reported the group of players who will make up the Rangers’ Black Aces. The Rangers will have a group of seven players, per Brooks: Zac Jones, Nils Lundkvist, Matthew Robertson, Jarred Tinordi, Lauri Pajuniemi, Tim Gettinger, and Keith Kinkaid.
- In a bit of good news, there is a positive update on prospect Ivan Miroshnichenko. Miroshnichenko is one of the most talented players available for this year’s NHL draft, but in March it was announced that he had been diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, clouding his professional future. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports on his 32 Thoughts podcast that Miroshnichenko is heading into his final round of chemotherapy and that some NHL teams met with him in Germany. Friedman says that he was told Miroshnichenko “looks pretty good, all things considered.” Friedman stated that after his treatment, the focus for Miroshnichenko will be getting back into on-ice shape and that while his draft situation is still murky, the health updates have been positive. So while these updates may not restore his place at the top of NHL team’s draft boards, these reports do indicate that he is in a much better spot with his health, which is ultimately far more important.
Jack Quinn Wins AHL Rookie Of The Year
Perhaps more than any other prospect in hockey, Buffalo Sabres’ first-rounder Jack Quinn‘s stock skyrocketed over the course of this 2021-22 season, and that is in large part due to his performance in the AHL. As a result, the coaches, players and members of the media in the AHL have selected Quinn as the 2021-22 AHL Rookie of the Year. This news comes as another note of optimism to conclude an exciting Sabres season, a campaign that has shown Sabres fans a light at the end of the team’s 11-year playoff-less tunnel. Quinn joins some prestigious company as a Dudley (Red) Garrett Memorial winner, with many future stars such as Brett Hull and Mikko Rantanen having taken home the award in the past.
Quinn, 20, was selected 8th overall in 2020, and was a member of the star-studded Ottawa 67’s team that tore the OHL apart before the pandemic ended their 2019-20 season. Before this year, Quinn had played 15 AHL games with the Sabres’ affiliate, the Rochester Americans, but he maintained his rookie eligibility status. He followed up that impressive 15-game trial run (where he posted 9 points) with this year’s campaign, a season where he scored at a blistering pace. He had 25 goals and 59 points in only 44 games, good for second on the Americans, despite getting into fewer games than many of his teammates. As an 8th overall pick, is was always known that Quinn had the potential to be a dangerous top-six scorer, but after such a successful campaign it’s clear there is even more upside in his game than there may have initially seemed to be.
For the Sabres, this award will only bolster the optimism of a market eagerly awaiting their team’s return to relevance. The Sabres have amassed an enviable stable of young talent, led by a quartet of top draft picks in Rasmus Dahlin, Owen Power, Dylan Cozens, and Quinn, and with those four in tow, they should be a competitive team next season. It seems Sabres fans agree, as over 93% of Sabres fans polled by The Athletic’s John Vogl (subscription link) believe the Sabres will return to the playoffs within the next two seasons. With the rise of Quinn cemented by this award, that number can only go up.
Looking At Max Domi’s Impending Free Agency
After taking a look at the upcoming free agency situation of Vincent Trocheck, we now pivot to looking at the future of his Hurricanes teammate, Max Domi. Tonight Domi hit an important milestone in his career: 500 NHL games played. Domi is famously the son of enforcer Tie Domi, who spent the majority of his career with just one team: the Toronto Maple Leafs. The stability that Tie Domi found once he established himself in Toronto is not something Max has managed in his career, and as a pending unrestricted free agent, the second Domi looks set to potentially land on the fifth NHL team of his career despite being just 27 years old.
As we previously mentioned when going over the situation of Trocheck, the Hurricanes already have significant cap dollars tied to their forward corps, (and more specifically their top three centers) and have important extensions to consider down the line. As a result, it is likely that Domi, who arrived in Carolina as part of a buzzer-beating deadline-day trade, is a pure rental for the team. So the former London Knights star looks primed to hit the unrestricted free-agent market for the first time in his career.
But what should his market look like? Domi is a bit of an enigmatic player. He is very talented offensively, having produced at an elite level once before (when he had 72 points for the Montreal Canadiens in the 2018-19 season) and having the overall skill level to appear on highlight reels. Additionally, Domi plays with a level of energy and enthusiasm that one would expect from the son of Tie Domi, and he plays a style that allows him to quickly endear himself to fans. Although coaches have mostly preferred to keep him on the wing, Domi also has experience playing center, which adds to his value. But with those positives comes a sometimes maddening level of inconsistency, as well as a shaky defensive game. Domi butted heads with coach John Tortorella in Columbus, and near the end of his tenure in Montreal, he found himself relegated to fourth-line center duty. So despite his intriguing package of skills and desirable work ethic, Domi’s overall offering as a free agent is more mixed than it may initially seem.
All of those factors make assessing what Domi could cost on the open market a challenging prospect. With many players, there are typically some generally accurate comparable players to use as a benchmark for estimating what kind of contract a player can command in free agency. But with Domi, are there many comparables that make sense for his situation? One tool we have to assess how Domi is viewed leaguewide is his trade value. It’s not perfect, as there are a whole host of factors that go into an in-season trade that are not present in the summer, but it can paint a somewhat accurate picture. 
Domi’s trade was a complicated three-way deal that involved a “cap broker” and multiple assets being swapped just to account for the financial aspects of the deal. But in the end, the Blue Jackets, the team trading Domi, got just one asset in return for him, the rights to prospect defenseman Aidan Hreschuk, a 19-year-old playing for Boston College. Hreschuk was a third-round pick in 2021 and had 8 points in 37 games in this NCAA season. If that return is any indication, Domi’s value has declined sharply since a few years ago, when he was the main return in Columbus’ Josh Anderson trade and earned a contract worth over $5MM AAV.
This offseason’s market for offensive skill players is one that theoretically offers teams many options, with elite scorers such as Johnny Gaudreau, Filip Forsberg, and Nazem Kadri as the headliners, meaning Domi may not be the beneficiary of a bidding war caused by an imbalance between the supply and demand of scoring talent on the market. That means that Domi may not reach the $5.3MM AAV mark he is currently earning if he wants a long-term contract. But if Domi wants a shorter-term deal, one where he can prioritize role and fit in order to re-enter the market on the back of a better platform year, that would likely make him a desirable player for many cap-strapped teams. Domi’s 2018-19 season showed that he can score at a high level in the NHL, but he hasn’t come close to that since. His decision this offseason regarding where he wants to sign as a first-time UFA could determine if he reaches those heights again.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Snapshots: Kuzmenko, Boudreau, Price
While the IIHF recently announced an additional sanction on hockey in Russia, and the NHL has cut ties with the KHL, Russian players are still permitted to sign as free agents with NHL clubs. With the KHL season set to end shortly, KHL free agents seeking to cross the Atlantic and sign with an NHL team have come under the microscope. Perhaps the most attention has been paid to Andrei Kuzmenko, who is set to become a free agent on May 1st. Kuzmenko, 26, had 53 points in 45 games in this KHL campaign, along with 14 points in 16 playoff games. Kuzmenko’s offensive profile is tantalizing to many NHL teams, and since he is still just 26 years old it is not unreasonable to think there is room for him to grow.
Like many of the KHL free agents who came before him, Kuzmenko is expected to have a competitive market when he and his representatives choose to begin negotiations. On TSN’s Insider Trading program, TSN Hockey Insider Chris Johnston reported that next week Kuzmenko will begin the interview process with NHL teams. Johnston reports that it is believed that 20 NHL teams will reach out to Kuzmenko with at least “some degree of interest.” In terms of what factors may play into Kuzmenko’s decision-making process, Johnston says that Kuzmenko “wants to go somewhere where he can play, where he’s going to have a role,” and that the market and city a team plays in is a less important factor. That should certainly make the competition to secure Kuzmenko’s services a bit more wide-open, and given that he only costs a signing team cap space and no assets to acquire, there will likely be many fanbases across the NHL hoping their team can be the one to land this intriguing KHL veteran.
Now, some more snapshots from across the NHL:
- While Bruce Boudreau’s contract situation has been a major storyline in recent months, it seems the fears of a potential offseason departure for the 67-year-old Canucks skipper can be all but dismissed. In an interview with CHEK’s Don Taylor and Rick Dhaliwal, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman gave an update on Boudreau’s status. In his interview, Friedman states that Boudreau will return as Vancouver’s coach “if everybody is reasonable.” Friedman believes that as long as neither party is “being ridiculous,” as he terms it, then there should be no real issue securing an agreement on Boudreau’s return. Both the Canucks’ players and fanbase have responded extremely well to Boudreau’s coaching, and since he arrived in Vancouver the Canucks have been among the tougher teams to beat in the NHL. So while there may have once been fears of an offseason divorce for Boudreau and the Canucks, it now seems that there is very little chance of those fears becoming reality.
- Carey Price has made his return to the Montreal Canadiens, but that doesn’t mean his future is made any more certain. In another note from TSN’s Insider Trading program, TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun gave an update on Price’s status. LeBrun reports that Price “wants to play next season” as a number-one priority for him, but in order to do so, he needs to have full health in the injured knee that cost him so many games this season. According to LeBrun, not a certainty that Price’s knee can get there. Lebrun doesn’t cast any majorly pessimistic forecasts on Price’s health, but he does state that there is “a bit of uncertainty” to Price’s health situation that may complicate not only his future but also the future of the Canadiens.
Goalie Injury Notes: Raanta, Lehner, Price
As if the Carolina Hurricanes needed more bad luck with their goaltenders after Frederik Andersen went down with an injury earlier this week, today’s victory over the New York Islanders brought more injury trouble. Antti Raanta, the team’s starter with Andersen out, left the game versus the Islanders in clear lower-body discomfort. Raanta had attempted to remain in the game after initially feeling pain, but was forced out after only a few moments and backup Pyotr Kochetkov finished the game. After the game, Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind’Amour had the following to say about Raanta:
I don’t know. And I don’t know how bad Raants is. I’m hoping it’s not too serious. We’ll know more in a few days.
Obviously, this is not a confidence-inspiring statement. But one has to keep in mind that Brind’Amour made these comments immediately after the game, so it is likely that he did not have enough information to make a more definitive statement on Raanta’s health. Carolina has big hopes for this season and is in a fight with the New York Rangers in what remains of this season to lock up the Metropolitan Division title. Raanta has battled injury issues throughout his NHL career, so this development cannot be a shocking one for the team, but it does come at an extremely unfortunate time with Raanta thrust into the number-one role with Andersen’s injury. For Carolina, this injury scare is ideally only a momentary setback, given that having Raanta back in time for Tuesday’s contest against the Rangers (where Carolina can clinch the Metropolitan Division title with a win in any fashion) is of utmost importance for the team.
Here are some other injury updates on goalies across the NHL:
- Another twist in the ongoing Robin Lehner saga came during today’s Vegas Golden Knights morning skate. Lehner was not present, instead, only Logan Thompson and the team’s emergency backup were in attendance, per Jesse Granger of The Athletic. Golden Knights coach Pete DeBoer stated that for tonight’s all-important contest against the San Jose Sharks, Thompson would be the starter and Lehner would be the backup. Obviously, given prior reporting on Lehner getting season-ending surgery and his absence from the morning skate today, the prospect of Lehner being the backup for tonight’s game is a confusing one. The entire situation is likely to become a lot clearer by the time puck drops tonight, though.
- The Canadiens recalled goalie Cayden Primeau from the Laval Rocket on an emergency basis in advance of tonight’s game against the Boston Bruins, and there was speculation on what that recall meant for the recently returned goalie Carey Price. Price was unavailable to the media after the team’s loss to the Ottawa Senators because he was receiving treatments from trainers, according to Sportsnet’s Eric Engels. Coach Martin St. Louis stated that the callup was not indicative of an injury-related setback for Price, but instead a measure to give him rest as he settles into the rigors of NHL action. Per St. Louis, Price will not travel with the team to New York for their tie against the Rangers but speculates that he could play on Friday in the team’s season finale versus the Florida Panthers.
Looking At Vincent Trocheck’s Impending Free Agency
The Carolina Hurricanes have been one of the NHL’s best teams over the past several seasons, and a major reason for that success has been their depth down the middle. The team has Sebastian Aho, one of the best centers in hockey, and Jordan Staal, who is in his tenth season with the club. In addition to those two, the team has had Vincent Trocheck since a February 2020 trade with Florida, but they may not have him for much longer. Trocheck, 28, is set to be an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his career, as the six-year, $4.75MM AAV contract he signed as a 23-year-old Panther is set to expire at the end of this season. With the Hurricanes having extended offseason addition Jesperi Kotkaniemi, getting him under contract until 2029-30 at $4.82MM against the cap, it looks as though Trocheck may be forced to join the third team of his career if he wants to maximize his earnings this summer.
That is not his preference, though. In an interview with Matt Larkin of Daily Faceoff, Trocheck reiterated his desire to stay in Carolina, saying:
That’s still the goal, to be here. I love being a Hurricane and having a chance to win every year is where you want to be. So hopefully we can figure something out.
As previously mentioned, though, staying in Carolina may not make financial sense for both the team and the player. The team has committed nearly $20MM for next season to the trio of Staal, Aho, and Kotkaniemi, and with other significant contracts on the books already, things are getting tight. Additionally, Vezina Trophy hopeful Frederik Andersen will need an extension after next season, meaning with all that in mind, Trocheck may be the player who becomes the odd man out this summer.
It may even be probable. With the extension to Tomas Hertl, the offseason’s center market is looking a bit thin. Beyond breakout Avalanche star Nazem Kadri, there aren’t many players available on this summer’s market who can play center and have a scoring pedigree. It is expected that franchise icons Evgeni Malkin and Patrice Bergeron will re-up with the only NHL clubs they have ever known, and Florida’s Claude Giroux has been more of a winger than a center in recent years. That leaves Trocheck and the Rangers’ Ryan Strome as the only two centers set to hit the market this offseason who have even crossed the 35-point mark in 2021-22, meaning the market for Trocheck this summer should be very player-friendly.
Trocheck has had a nice season in Carolina, with 20 goals and 48 points in 79 games. This is Trocheck’s fourth season where he has reached the 20-goal plateau, and he potted 17 in only 47 games last season. Trocheck also has flashed even higher levels of offensive upside, as he hit 31 goals and 75 points in the 2017-18 season with the Panthers. In addition to his offense, Trocheck has a decently well-rounded defensive game, and he ranks third among Hurricanes forwards in shorthanded time-on-ice per game. So, in short, Trocheck is a two-way center that can help a team defensively and add 20 goals and 50 points as a baseline level of offensive production. Players like that get paid on the open market, and with the aforementioned dearth of quality centers in this offseason’s free-agent class, Trocheck is lined up to get a major contract.
So even if his preference is to remain in Carolina, money is typically the ultimate deciding factor for most players, (and rightfully so) meaning Trocheck’s time as a Hurricane is likely coming to an end. But that leaves a question to be considered: with comparable centers like Kevin Hayes crossing the $7MM AAV threshold in their long-term free-agent contracts, is $7MM+ per year on a long-term contract an appropriate price to pay for a player like Trocheck, someone who is an accomplished all-around center but far from a superstar?
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Arthur Kaliyev Avoids Suspension, Earns Fine
The Department of Player Safety has decided on a punishment for Kings forward Arthur Kaliyev after he cross-checked Ducks defenseman Josh Mahura in the closing moments of last night’s 4-2 Kings victory. Kaliyev was initially given a major penalty and a game misconduct, but that was obviously not the end of the punishment as the Department of Player Safety has handed Kaliyev a fine of $2,235.42, the maximum allowable under the league’s collective bargaining agreement. Things can get testy between the Kings and Ducks, two heated rivals, but the league has determined that Kaliyev’s actions last night went too far.
Kaliyev, 20, is a player known more for his goal-scoring prowess than his feistiness or willingness to engage in fine-worthy hockey. But last night was obviously an exception, as his tussle with Mahura has ended in a punishment directly from the Department of Player Safety. Kaliyev was charged with 15 penalty minutes on the play, nearly doubling his season total, which was 22 penalty minutes before the incident with Mahura.
Kaliyev has to consider himself lucky to avoid suspension because the Kings are in a crucial final stretch of their season. They are seeking to put themselves out of reach of the Vegas Golden Knights and finally lock up their spot in the Stanley Cup playoffs, so Kaliyev missing out on an important late-season contest would be a disappointment for the young top prospect. Kaliyev has 14 goals and 27 points in 78 games this season and has flashed a real knack for scoring. Kaliyev, the Kings, and the Department of Player Safety are all likely hoping this fine will not be a signal of things to come for the young sniper.
Seattle Kraken Sign Ryker Evans
The Seattle Kraken have inked their second-ever draft pick, defenseman Ryker Evans, to a three-year entry-level contract. The team announced that Evans will join the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers for their first-round matchup in the Calder Cup playoffs. The Athletic’s Ryan S. Clark clarified that the plan is for Evans’ entry-level deal to begin next year, so he can sign an amateur tryout agreement to play for the Checkers this year. In a statement, Kraken GM Ron Francis had the following to say about Evans:
We’re excited to sign our second-ever draft pick, Ryker had a really impressive season with the Regina Pats and we’re looking forward to having him continue his development with our organization.
Evans, 20, experienced a huge rise in his prospect profile in just one season. After going undrafted as an eighteen-year-old prospect in the 2020 draft, Evans posted 28 points in 24 games in the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 WHL season and, off the back of that success, got selected just outside of the first round (35th overall) in the 2021 draft. In the team’s announcement of the contract, the Kraken stated their amateur scouts were “pounding the table” to get Evans. With his level of production, it’s easy to see why. Evans has followed up his 2020-21 success with another productive season for the Regina Pats, this time posting 61 points in 63 games.
Evans had to battle being tagged as “undersized” earlier in his career, but that hasn’t stopped him from becoming a high-quality defensive prospect. He was recently named to the second All-Star team of his division in the WHL, and his puck-moving style is a great fit for the modern NHL. While the Kraken haven’t had a ton to celebrate in their inaugural season, and much of the fanbase has already set their sights on the draft lottery next month, Evans’ progression to being one of the top offensive defensemen in the WHL has to be a reason for optimism for the young franchise.
Latest On Bruce Boudreau
While a 6-3 loss to the Minnesota Wild last night all but ended the Canucks’ fading playoff hopes, their fans can enter this offseason with a good degree of optimism about the future of their team. A major reason for why that optimism is possible is coach Bruce Boudreau, who was hired earlier this year as a replacement for fired coach Travis Green. Boudreau has revived the Canucks, and under his watch, the team has gone 30-14-9, one of the best runs in the NHL. But despite that reasonable optimism thanks to Boudreau’s work, his future in Vancouver has been a bit cloudy. GM Patrik Allvin was non-committal when asked about Boudreau’s future, and talk of his contract situation has made headlines across the NHL in recent months. Boudreau is believed to have the option for a second year on the contract he signed with Vancouver, but the exact conditions of that second year are a bit murky, as it is believed that each party (both the Canucks and Boudreau) have an “out” if that is the route they choose. So while few could have imagined a better run of success for Boudreau, there is still uncertainty surrounding his future as the coach of the Canucks.
But that uncertainty may slowly be giving way to growing confidence in Boudreau returning for another season. The Athletic’s Thomas Drance has reported (subscription required) that Boudreau met with his representation this week, and that there is a “growing sense” in Vancouver that the Canucks will attempt to retain Boudreau “in some fashion.” But Drance clarifies that finances could get in the way of a smooth return. Boudreau is reportedly set to make $2.5MM next season if he coaches on the Canucks, a number that Drance believes represents a “low-end valuation” of what he would be paid as a free agent. So, in theory, given that Boudreau has an “out” in his contract and the large number of head coaching vacancies expected for this offseason, it seems that it may not be totally out of the realm of possibility that Boudreau opts to take a contract with a larger commitment from another club.
For the Canucks, it seems as though retaining Boudreau should be more of a straightforward decision than it has been. Boudreau’s work revived the team as they were deeply struggling during the final days of the Jim Benning/Travis Green era. Crucial star players, players who look set as the pillars of the Canucks’ franchise going into the future, have seen their play improve under Boudreau’s watch. Overall they have been one of the tougher teams to defeat in the entire league since he has taken over, and it’s not easy to come up with reasons why an organization in search of its first long-term coach since Alain Vigneault would choose to go in a different direction when they already have Boudreau behind their bench. But if there’s one thing that seems likely under the Canucks’ new regime, it’s bold changes. With names like Brock Boeser who were once seemingly untouchable floating in trade rumors, it would not be an incredible surprise if Boudreau were coaching elsewhere by the time players report for training camp this fall.
Robin Lehner To Undergo Season-Ending Surgery
1:57 PM: Coach Pete DeBoer has added some mystery to the situation. Despite ESPN’s reporting and corroboration from other media sources, when asked about Lehner’s situation DeBoer stated that the reports of Lehner undergoing season-ending surgery are not accurate “to his knowledge.” He said that he expects Lehner to be at practice tomorrow. This is certainly an unexpected development, and a situation that we will keep updating as more information becomes available.
1:11 PM: As the Vegas Golden Knights look to make the playoffs over this final stretch of the season, they now will have to do so without their starting goaltender. ESPN’s Emily Kaplan has reported that Golden Knights goaltender Robin Lehner‘s season is over, as he has opted to undergo surgery for a major knee injury he suffered against Philadelphia last month. Lehner had attempted to play through that injury over the past month but has finally made the choice to end his season to get started on the recovery process.
This was the 30-year-old Lehner’s first season as the Golden Knights’ unquestioned starting goalie thanks to the offseason departure of Marc-Andre Fleury, and Lehner finishes his season having posted mixed results. His .907 save percentage over 44 games played ranks 30th in the NHL, and his inconsistency has been a factor in the Golden Knights’ struggles this season. He has had games where he has shown the brilliance that made him a Vezina Trophy finalist in 2018-19, but has also had games where he has looked off and struggled to make expected saves. The Golden Knights are committed to him financially, as he holds a contract worth $5MM against the cap through 2024-2025, but coach Pete DeBoer’s comments and Lehner’s struggles to fill Fleury’s shoes leave questions about his long-term future in Vegas’ crease.
With Lehner out, the fate of the Golden Knights’ season now rests in the hands of goaltender Logan Thompson. The undrafted Thompson, 25, has earned the trust of coach Pete DeBoer in recent weeks and has posted a sterling .920 save percentage in 15 games this season. While the former Brandon Wheat King was stopping pucks in the ECHL as recently as 2019-20, it is his rapid rise through the ranks of Vegas’ organization that has put him in this position. He posted a .943 save percentage in 23 games last season for the Henderson Silver Knights and has a .920 in games at that level this season. Given the lofty expectations surrounding the Golden Knights, the entire organization has to be hopeful that Thompson can continue that run of success into Vegas’ next four games and save their season.