David Perron

Vegas Golden Knights Activate Luca Sbisa, Place Two Others On IR

November 30, 2017 at 2:05 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

The Vegas Golden Knights are getting an important defender back, activating Luca Sbisa from injured reserve. Unfortunately in his place the team has placed both David Perron and William Carrier to IR, and neither are with the club on their current road trip.

Sbisa hasn’t played since November 10th, when he was knocked out of the lineup with a lower-body injury. The 27-year old defenseman had been logging more than 20 minutes a night for the Golden Knights, and was on a career-high pace in the early season. Having only recorded more than 20 points in a season once before, eight in his first 16 games was certainly impressive. His speed and experience will come in handy for the Golden Knights as they continue to lead the Pacific Division a quarter of the way through the season.

For Perron and Carrier, Sunday is the earliest either can return since both will have their IR stints dated retroactive to their previous game. The pair both missed Tuesday’s 3-0 loss at the hands of the Dallas Stars, a team chasing them in the standings. Sbisa is expected to jump back into the lineup alongside Colin Miller.

Vegas Golden Knights Expected To Recall Stefan Matteau

November 27, 2017 at 3:39 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee 4 Comments

The Vegas Golden Knights have been on fire for most of the season, and currently sit in first place in the Pacific Division. The expansion franchise has turned a rag-tag group of players from the fringes of NHL rosters into a cohesive unit, even in the face of staggering injuries. Though Luca Sbisa was at practice wearing a no-contract jersey, and Marc-Andre Fleury skated before teammates according to David Schoen of the Las Vegas Review Journal, David Perron and William Carrier were nowhere to be seen on the ice at T-Mobile Arena. That leaves them with just 11 healthy forwards at practice, and in need of some help up front.

Enter Stefan Matteau, who according to NHL.com contributor Anthony Marcotte will be recalled by the Golden Knights for the first time this season. The son of former NHLer Stephane Matteau, Stefan was selected 29th-overall by the New Jersey Devils in 2012, and eventually dealt to Montreal for Devante Smith-Pelly. He wasn’t qualified this summer by the Canadiens, and eventually signed a one-year contract with Vegas. Projected as a powerful winger with speed and physicality, it was hoped that Matteau would eventually develop more of an offensive game to be able to stick in the NHL. That hasn’t happened yet, as he has just six points in 56 career NHL contests and hasn’t been a big scoring threat even at the minor league level.

Still, Vegas has built their season on players that were underestimated so far in their careers and will try to catch more lightning in a bottle with Matteau. The 6’2″ 220-lbs forward could bring an added level of physicality and energy to their bottom six, and perhaps show that he’s ready for an increased role. Power forwards often find their footing later in their careers, and at 23 years old Matteau can’t quite be labelled a bust just yet. Even if his offensive game never develops, perhaps he can provide different value to the Golden Knights.

Western Notes: Sedin, Predators, Gudbranson, Perron

November 25, 2017 at 7:25 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg Leave a Comment

Daniel Sedin has a chance to take the spotlight again for the Vancouver Canucks. At age 37, neither Sedin nor his brother, Henrik Sedin, are the focal points of the team anymore. However, after Daniel Sedin picked up a goal and an assist in Friday’s game against the New Jersey Devils, he now just needs two points to join his brother as the 87th NHL player to reach 1,000 points.

His next opportunity will be Sunday against the New York Rangers, according to Ben Kuzma of The Province. Henrik Sedin already accomplished the feat last season and currently boasts 1,032 points.

“It’s exciting,” said Henrik Sedin. “When it happened to me, I didn’t realize how big a thing it was for myself until it happened. I’m sure it’s going to be the same thing for him. He never talks about it or thinks about it and maybe not until today (Friday). But two points away. When it happens, it’s going to be fun for him.”

Adam Vingan of the Tennessean hands out first quarter grades for the Nashville Predators, handing out excellent grades to Filip Forsberg and the Predators’ top three defenders in Roman Josi, P.K. Subban and Mattias Ekholm. He gave Forsberg the MVP award, who has 24 points in 22 games so far this year. He credited the defense for being the backbone of the team and believes that once Ryan Ellis returns from offseason knee surgery in the next few weeks, the team’s defense will be hard to beat. Amongst other notable grades, the scribe hands an incomplete to Nick Bonino who has been hurt for much of the season and hasn’t shown much so far and also hands a below average grade to youngster Pontus Aberg, who many thought could have a breakout year. Instead, he has been a repeated healthy scratch and hasn’t scored a goal yet in 12 games.
Lyle Richardson of The Hockey News writes that while Vancouver Canucks defenseman Erik Gudbranson has been mentioned in trade rumors often, it might be just as equally possible the Canucks bring him back next year. Gudbranson, who is eligible for unrestricted free agency at the end of the season, could be a quality rental candidate with teams such as Toronto and Florida as possible trade targets. However, Richardson writes that Gudbranson loves playing in the team’s up-tempo style of play, is well liked by Vancouver brass and has shown an interest in re-signing with the Canucks. The real question is whether Vancouver would want to pay his rumored $5-6MM price tag.
Vegas Golden Knights winger David Perron, who is not playing in tonight’s game against the Arizona Coyotes, did not accompany the team on the road trip down to Phoenix, according to Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Steve Carp. He is receiving treatment on his upper-body injury and remains day-to-day.

Golden Knights Notes: McPhee On Trades, Perron Injured

November 25, 2017 at 9:30 am CDT | by Brian La Rose 1 Comment

Before the season started, the Golden Knights were widely picked to be at or near the bottom of the Western Conference standings. Expansion teams rarely have success in their inaugural campaign but despite a litany of injuries between the pipes, Vegas actually finds themselves in first place in the Pacific Division.

With low expectations and the way the roster was constructed with a lot of players on short-term contracts, many have wondered if the team will still plan to be active sellers at the trade deadline. Gary Lawless of the Golden Knights’ team site asked GM George McPhee that very question and he didn’t exactly commit either way:

“We certainly have a plan, but in this business it changes every day. I don’t know what will take place over the next three or four months. What we do know is that we’re here to compete every day. We’re going to practice hard and we’re going to play hard. We’ll see what it takes and what develops four months from now remains to be seen. We’re here to compete and win hockey games.”

Forwards James Neal, David Perron, and Jonathan Marchessault highlight a lengthy list of pending unrestricted free agents. The longer they stay in the hunt, the odds of these players being dealt may dip but it still wouldn’t be surprising if they moved some of their other veteran depth regardless of where they find themselves standings-wise come February.

What Your Team Is Thankful For: Vegas Golden Knights

November 19, 2017 at 4:28 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg Leave a Comment

As the holiday season approaches, PHR will look at what teams are thankful for this year. There also might be a few things your team would like down the road. We take a look at what’s gone well in the first month and what could improve as the season rolls on.

What are the Vegas Golden Knights most thankful for?

An incredible start in their inaugural season.

No matter what happens, whether this expansion franchise ends up garnering a playoff spot at the end of the year or they fall off and end up in the lottery where everyone expected them to be, the Golden Knights have started in a positive, exciting and un-expansionlike way which Las Vegas fans won’t forget too quickly. Just to remind you, the NHL added nine expansion teams from 1991 to 2001, most of which bottomed out in their first season. The best team was the Florida Panthers who finished with a 33-34-17 season for 83 points in the 1993-94 season. In less than two months, the Golden Knights have a 11-6-1 record and are on pace to easily best those numbers.

Who are the Golden Knights more thankful for?

All those emerging expansion picks. The Golden Knights haven’t been a one-man show on offense, but their offense has been a collected effort in which the scoring has been evenly spread out. The team collected many emerging young players through the expansion draft, whether that is William Karlsson (from Columbus), Oscar Lindberg (from New York Rangers), Erik Haula (from Minnesota), Jon Marchessault (from Florida), or Cody Eakin (from Dallas) just to name a few. That doesn’t include some of the veteran talents such as James Neal (from Nashville) and David Perron (from St. Louis) or the defensive depth such as Luca Sbisa (from Vancouver), Nate Schmidt (from Washington), Brayden McNabb (from Los Angeles) and Colin Miller (from Boston).

What would the Golden Knights be more thankful for?

Healthy goaltending? It’s been well documented on how the team has been playing with their fourth-string goaltender Maxime Lagace in net for the past couple of weeks, who has fared quite well (unless you include that 8-2 loss to Edmonton last week). The team has lost the face of their franchise, Marc-Andre Fleury due to a concussion, backup Malcolm Subban to a lower-body injury and third-stringer Oskar Dansk to a lower-body injury. Lagace marked the fourth and last goaltender in their system, unless you include 2017 seventh-round pick Dylan Ferguson. Oh yeah, they did call Ferguson up on emergency from his junior team. Even the 19-year-old managed to see nine minutes of playing time. However, the team seems to have held on long enough as Ferguson has been sent back, and Subban is reportedly ready to return soon, possibly even tonight, while both Fleury and Dansk could be back shortly as well.

What should be on the Golden Knights’ Holiday Wish List?

Continued health and production for their future trade chips.

While the team is currently on a potential playoff run, the team is very likely to be active at the trade deadline. Players like Neal, Perron and Sbisa, to name a few are likely to be shopped at the trade deadline since all will be unrestricted free agents. It’s likely an expansion team isn’t going to extend any of them to long-term, high-priced contracts when the team plans to build long-term with youth. Considering how well Neal has played, he could net the team a coveted 2018 first-round pick if he can stay healthy. Both Perron and Sbisa have also improved their stocks while with Vegas and could also produce some good picks in the right deal.

Salary Cap Deep Dive: Vegas Golden Knights

September 17, 2017 at 4:57 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg 1 Comment

Navigating the Salary Cap is probably one of the more important tasks for any general manager to have. Teams that can avert total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.

PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2017-18 season. This will focus more on those players who are integral parts of the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.

Vegas Golden Knights

Current Cap Hit: $69,375,832 (under the $75MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

F Alex Tuch (Two years remaining, $925K)
D Shea Theodore (One year remaining, $863K)

Potential Bonuses

Tuch: $425K

While the brand-new franchise is focused on building up a powerhouse team over the next five years, which means draft picks and more draft picks, which will create a revolving door at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, there should be at least one constant who is already locked in for the future in Theodore. The just-turned 22-year-old is considered to be a long-term piece and despite the team’s overwhelming defensive logjam, the hope is Theodore is on the team’s opening day roster. Theodore shined last year during Anaheim’s playoff run when he along with several other defenseman had to step in for injured players and fared well. Theodore, a offensive defenseman, was a first-round pick of the Ducks in 2013 and despite having just nine points in 39 regular season games last year, he put up eight goals in 14 playoff games.

Tuch, a talented forward acquired near the expansion draft in a side deal with the Minnesota Wild, has a chance to immediately make the team out of training camp. The 21-year-old wing was a first-round pick in 2014 and scored 18 goals for the AHL’s Iowa Wild last year.

One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level

F James Neal ($5MM, UFA)
F Mikhail Grabovski ($5MM, UFA)
D Jason Garrison ($4.6MM, UFA)
F David Perron ($3.75MM, UFA)
D Luca Sbisa ($3.6MM, UFA)
D Clayton Stoner ($3.25MM, UFA)
D Brayden McNabb ($1.7MM, UFA)
D Jonathon Merrill ($1.14MM, RFA)
F William Karlsson ($1MM, RFA)
D Colin Miller ($1MM, RFA)
D Deryk Engelland ($1MM, UFA)
G Calvin Pickard ($1MM, RFA)
F Jon Marchessault ($750K, UFA)
F Teemu Pulkkinen ($700K, RFA)

The Golden Knights will be looking to move as many of their players at the trade deadline as they can. Neal should be their biggest trade bait as many teams wouldn’t mind adding a goal-scorer right in time for the playoffs. The 30-year-old wing is coming off a 23-goal season in Nashville and has scored 165 goals in the last six seasons combined. The team hopes that playing on a top line should keep his scoring numbers up high so that his price increases at the perfect time, but a recent report that a wrist injury suffered during the playoffs last year is still affecting Neal and he will miss two to four weeks is concerning. The team also has high hopes it can move Perron. After putting up a career-high 28 goals in 2013-14, he has struggled with injuries but rebounded last year with an 18 goal season. If he can stay healthy and produce similar numbers, he might be worth a mid to late pick.

One key decision the team will have to make is what to do with Marchessault, who is coming off a 30-goal season a year ago in Florida. At $750K, he is a bargain for the next year, but if he can duplicate his numbers from last year, he would be in line for a big payday. Complicating the situation is that Vegas head coach Gerard Gallant is a big fan of the 26-year-old and was the head coach in Florida wlast year when Marchessault started his breakout season.

The team also has a number of restricted free agents who they will likely hold onto. While Pickard’s name is rarely mentioned in Vegas as he is the current backup, don’t be surprised if Pickard is penciled in as the goaltender of the future. The 25-year-old struggled with Colorado last year (although he did have one of the worst teams around him), but was a promising prospect before that. Miller is another who should be retained. The 24-year-old was a promising defender in Boston who was just beginning to get full-time work. He got into 61 games last year and showed quite a bit of promise. Karlsson should get a bottom line spot in the lineup. The 24-year-old is coming off a 25-point season and the team hopes he takes his game up a notch.

While Grabovski likely won’t see the ice ever in Las Vegas (freeing the team of his $5MM cap hit), Garrison is a defender who may prove to have some value if he can produce on one of the team’s top defensive lines. The 32-year-old struggled at times in Tampa Bay and his offensive numbers have declined in the past couple of years. McNabb is considered to be an excellent defender and should provide solid defense for Vegas. He missed a lot of time due to a broken collarbone injury he suffered last October, forcing the 26-year-old in and out of the lineup all season and he eventually lost his starting job at the end of the year, but should get regular minutes with the Golden Knights. Sbisa is another player who should get playing time in hopes the team can move him later this year. The 27-year-old blueliner was a solid defenseman, but few teams were interested in his $3.6MM pricetag.

Two Years Remaining

G Marc-Andre Fleury ($5.75MM, UFA)
F Vadim Shipachyov ($4.5MM, UFA)
D Nate Schmidt ($2.23MM, UFA)
F Oscar Lindberg ($1.7MM, UFA)
F Pierre-Edouard Bellemare ($1.45MM, UFA)
D Griffin Reinhart ($800K, RFA)
D Brad Hunt ($650K, UFA)

We’ll see where Fleury’s game is in two years, but the 32-year-old goaltender actually struggled last year with the Penguins. He finished the season with a 3.02 GAA in 38 games and had a .909 save percentage, well under his usual numbers. The question is, can he improve on that much when he doesn’t have Pittsburgh’s solid defense behind him and is, in fact, behind an expansion defensive line? Obviously, he made a name for himself in the playoffs when he had to sub in for an injured Matt Murray and thrived for a round until Murray returned. Pickard might be ready to supplant Fleury in two years if he hadn’t already done it.

Shipachyov is a different story. The 30-year-old KHL forward has been a big-time goal scorer for many year and now brings his talent to Las Vegas. However, he only inked a two-year deal and no one is quite sure how his game will translate to the NHL. They likely will avoid trading him in the first year of the deal, but don’t be surprised if he gets moved before his contract expires.

Schmidt is finally going to get a chance to prove he’s a top four defenseman. On a crowded defensive line, Schmidt was still a very good player, but he must prove himself now that he will be among the better defenders on the team. Lindberg is another young player who will be given a better opportunity to thrive. The 25-year-old center who was selected from the New York Rangers has tallied 21 goals in two season combined and the hope is he breaks out with the Golden Knights.

Three Years Remaining

F David Clarkson ($5.25MM, UFA)
F Cody Eakin ($3.85MM, UFA)
F Erik Haula ($2.75MM, UFA)

The one thing is the team has few long-term deals and Clarkson’s deal shouldn’t count against the cap as the 33-year-old veteran missed all of last season and played in just 23 games in the 2015-16 season. He has been plagued by lower back issues for the last few years. The Golden Knights took the contract of Clarkson off the Columbus Blue Jackets’ hands for a first-round pick in 2017 and a second round pick in 2019.

Eakin, on the other hand, is a gamble made by general manager George McPhee. Originally drafted by McPhee in Washington back in 2009, Eakin has had an up and down career, including three seasons where he scored 16 or more goals, but the 26-year-old center really struggled in Dallas last season with just three goals in 60 games. McPhee likely thinks he can revive his career. Haula came from Minnesota in the expansion draft, but the 26-year old center has consistently improved in the four years he’s been in the league, finishing with 15 goal and 11 assist season. The team signed Haula to a three-year deal during their free agency window before the expansion draft. By taking Haula and avoiding Minnesota’s glut of defensemen, they also acquired Tuch as part of the overall deal.

Four Or More Years Remaining

F Reilly Smith ($5MM through 2021-22)

Only one deal goes over four years as the team took the challenge of trading for Reilly Smith at the expansion draft for a 2018 fourth-round pick as part of a side deal. Smith is still just 26 and has scored 40 goals over the past two years combined, although he had a down year last year with just 15 goals and 22 assists. The team hopes Gallant, Smith’s former coach, can get him to play at the level when Smith was at his best.

Buyouts

None

Retained Salary Transactions

Alexei Emelin ($1.1MM for 2017-18)

Still To Sign

None

Looking Ahead

The team should thrive in Vegas as the team has made Fleury the face of the franchise and hopes to build the team’s initial success on Fleury, Neal and Shipachyov. The team is committed to build for the future. Their flurry of deals, however, netted them three first-round picks this year and a bunch of others and the hope is that if some players can have big years, the team can unload those for even more picks.

Eventually this team will be built around players like Cody Glass, Erik Brannstrom, Nick Suzuki, Theodore and other young players who are going to be added to their franchise over time.

Evening Notes: Zetterberg, Shipachyov, Pickard

September 2, 2017 at 6:46 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg Leave a Comment

The Detroit Red Wings are getting ready to start another season shortly and while many aren’t expecting an impressive season from this team, the team still has eyes for the playoffs. MLive’s Ansar Khan answers some mailbag questions about the upcoming season and points out that with the combination of gritty veterans and young talent, the team may show some promise. The scribe writes to expect 36-year-old veteran Henrik Zetterberg to center Tomas Tatar and Gustav Nyquist, who were their top line at the end of last year. The belief is that Tatar and Nyquist should benefit from Zetterberg’s presence to build their confidence early in the season.

He added that Dylan Larkin looks ready to take over as the team’s second-line center and be matched with Anthony Mantha, who scored 17 goals in his first full season. Justin Abdelkader might be a good fit to fill out that line. The third line would Frans Nielsen, Darren Helm and Andreas Athanasiou, if the restricted free agent signs with the team. Luke Glendening, Riley Sheahan and Tyler Bertuzzi are the likely candidates on the fourth line, assuming things don’t change much in training camp.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal’s David Schoen writes that the team will be counting heavily on the success of Russian veteran Vadim Shipachyov this season. The 30-year-old forward was the third-leading scorer in the KHL last year with 26 goals and the team believes that if he can make the conversion to the NHL successfully, the Golden Knights might be better than many believe when it comes to offense. The team already has James Neal, Jon Marchessault, Reilly Smith, David Perron and the hope is Shipachyov will be that top-line player that opens up the offense.
In the same story, Schoen adds that he wouldn’t be surprised if Golden Knights’ goaltender Calvin Pickard makes a name for himself, possibly even this season. While starting goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury has received all the press and has become the face of the franchise, Pickard is just 25 years old and was a second-round pick in 2010. He was considered a top prospect before he struggled in a full-time role for the struggling Colorado Avalanche last year. His 2.98 GAA left a lot to be desired. However, Fleury is already 33 and while he was impressive in the playoffs for the Penguins, didn’t have a great year as the backup, putting up a 3.02 GAA for the year in 38 games. If Pickard can re-establish himself in Las Vegas, he could find himself getting big minutes.

Senators Passed Up Chance To Unload Ryan

August 8, 2017 at 6:53 pm CDT | by Seth Lawrence 2 Comments

One of the few players who was heavily anticipated to become a Vegas Golden Knight did not – Bobby Ryan. Despite an above-average playoff performance in the Senators’ heartbreaking Conference Final run, Ryan has vastly under-performed relative to his contract. Instead of coordinating a deal to unload that contract to Vegas, they instead lost Marc Methot, perhaps the second best defenseman on the team in that Cinderella story. Methot’s contract was not perfect, to be sure, but Ryan’s deal still looms large over the team for years.

It should be noted that Ryan has been a consistent 50+ point producer prior to this season, where he tallied only 25 through 62 contests. He’s been on pace for over 50 every year since he was a rookie. That said, his fall from grace in 2016-17was concerning and dramatic. His puck control seriously declined, his decision making faltered, and his production took a nosedive. With only 12 goals, and coming off a hot post-season, the time was ripe for GM Pierre Dorion to take advantage of Vegas’ unique situation and rid himself of a bad contract. Earning $7.25 MM AAV for the next five seasons, Ryan is the 36th highest paid forward in the league, and second-highest on the payroll behind Erik Karlsson.

For those who believe such an arrangement could not have been worked out, merely look at some of the contracts Vegas did take on. The essentially retired David Clarkson’s $5.25 MM for the next 3 seasons was shipped out at the price of a first and a 2020 second. The perennially concussed Mikhail Grabovski was dealt for a similar package, which also protected some of the Islanders’ players. Vegas also didn’t shy away from taking veteran players with value – they selected James Neal (29 years old) from Nashville as well as David Perron from the Blues (29 years old). Certainly, with a little encouragement, George McPhee might have entertained the possibility of Ryan as a Knight. The price may have been steep, but Karlsson is in the prime of his career, while many players are looking for raises in the immediate future. Clearing Ryan’s albatross off the books may have gone a long way towards building toward a consistent contender.

Ultimately, Dorion decided against unloading a bloated contract in hopes that Ryan’s post-season revival was no mirage. With the UFA crop available, it’s difficult to blame the management for doubling down on the struggling winger. Five roster players will be UFA after this season, including Craig Anderson and Kyle Turris, while Mark Stone (RFA) has earned a raise. Karlsson will then be due a raise for 2019-20, as will five other forwards. The team will need to rely upon cost-effective ELC players and bargain contracts to continue holding pace with the rest of the Atlantic division. Only time will tell whether the Ryan decision was the correct one.

Vegas Notes: Marchessault, Neal, Perron, Sbisa

July 30, 2017 at 10:28 am CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg Leave a Comment

While it’s almost impossible to guess what the Vegas Golden Knight’s roster may look like from year-to-year for the forseeable future as general manager George McPhee has made it clear that trading for draft picks is his first and foremost goal, there are some who see trends already and, according to Sportsnet’s Luke Fox, don’t be surprised at all if forward Jon Marchessault is re-signed to a long-term deal next year.

Fox did a podcast with Las Vegas Review-Journal hockey writer Steve Carp (podcast on website), who says that Marchessault’s familiarity with former Florida Panthers’ head coach Gerard Gallant will make him want to stay in Vegas. The 26-year-old center will be joining his fourth team and has had his ups and downs after going undrafted early in his career. Before his 30-goal breakout season last year, he had only played in 49 career NHL games. He credits some of his success to Gallant, who was his head coach before being dismissed during the season. However, now that they are reunited in Las Vegas, he may look to stay where he is wanted.

Carp also says that the two most valuable trade chips at next year’s trade deadline will be James Neal and David Perron. While Neal’s name comes as no surprise after putting up 54 goals in the past two years, Perron’s value is unknown. The 29-year-old wing is far from his 28-goal season back in 2013-14, but did manage to play a full season last year in St. Louis and put up 18 goals. The belief is that McPhee is hoping to get second-round picks for each player, although Carp says he probably would be willing to accept a third-rounder, if needed. The Golden Knights whose emphasis is on receiving picks between the first and third round need help for next year’s draft. After having six picks in this year’s draft (including three first-rounders), Vegas has just two for 2018, yet seven in 2019 and five picks in the first three rounds in 2020. They hope the trade deadline will net them those 2018 picks.
Carp adds that one other issue with having 11 defenders currently on their roster is that nine of them are left-handed. Of all the defensemen on the roster, Carp says that McPhee wants to move Luca Sbisa, who has one year left on his deal, but at $3.6MM. “He’s 27 but he’s got a lot of money [owed to him],” Carp said. “I’m not sure if George didn’t overplay his hand a little bit in taking all these defencemen thinking he could flip ’em quickly for picks.”
Neal is also the likely candidate to become team captain, according to Carp. While Vegas has played up Marc-Andre Fleury as the face of the franchise, goaltenders are not permitted to be “on ice” captains.
Don’t expect the Golden Knights to sign one of the many veteran free agent forwards, according to Carp. A veteran does not fit in with the Golden Knight’s plans of developing youth or using veterans to trade for picks since no one seems to want players like Shane Doan or Jaromir Jagr now when they are available.

Vegas Golden Knights & Trade Deadline Capital

July 18, 2017 at 11:08 am CDT | by Gavin Lee 1 Comment

As we look back at the recent NHL Expansion Draft, it seems as though the Vegas Golden Knights had a very clear plan. Three tenets seem to influence most if not all of their selections.

Leverage your opportunity to gain draft picks and young players in exchange for taking a bad contract.
If unwilling to deal, take players with some value and only one or two years remaining on their contract.
If no players like that exist, take a pending free agent to avoid burdening your cap.

Though some may look at this and see an obvious strategy, it is amazing how closely the Golden Knights followed it. A quick look at their CapFriendly page and you can immediately see that they avoided players who were under contract long-term in the draft, as they currently have 16 players that will be unrestricted free agents either next summer or the year after that. Their only long-term contracts are Reilly Smith, David Clarkson and Erik Haula—players they acquired in trade (the Wild gave them the chance to sign Haula)—and Cody Eakin, who is under contract for a third season.

That cap flexibility is paramount to the Golden Knights, as it was never about building through the expansion draft. Almost none of the assets gained through a direct selection should play much of an impact on the team long term, and because of it GM George McPhee will be holding court on another transaction season next year. The trade deadline should be hugely influenced by the Golden Knights, with a large number of assets on the market.

James Neal, David Perron and Jon Marchessault, arguably the three most prolific offensive weapons the Golden Knights selected in the draft are all UFAs next summer, and would each command a hefty price on the open market. Established goal scorers are moved each spring for big packages, and each of these three are no different.

Brayden McNabb and Luca Sbisa headline the pending UFAs on defense and could each fetch a solid return at the deadline, especially if given increased roles for Vegas. Even Jason Garrison could be of some interest if the team is willing to retain a portion of his already (at that point) prorated salary. Garrison will probably get some powerplay time with the Golden Knights to boost his value come the deadline.

Past the UFAs, the team also has several pending RFAs already in their mid-twenties. Colin Miller for example will turn 25 just after the season begins, and is three years away from unrestricted free agency. It’s unlikely that the team competes for a Stanley Cup while Miller remains a cheap option, meaning moving him in the next year could fetch the biggest return. As a puck-moving defensemen he should get plenty of opportunity to show off his offensive upside.

Though some players will be moved out before the season starts because of the simple fact they currently have too many, it’s not unlikely that the Golden Knights will be holding all the cards come February once again. They could easily have half a dozen players on any trade bait list, and add to the impressive number of draft picks they already own.

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