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Snapshots: Stastny, Hextall, Klefbom

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The Vegas Golden Knights may have lost a pair of high-end forwards in James Neal and David Perron, but the team did bring in an important free agent this offseason when they signed center Paul Stastny to a three-year deal. The 32-year-old center showed off his impressive skills after he was traded to the Winnipeg Jets from St. Louis at the trade deadline. Stastny was given the role of anchoring a line with their star youngsters’ Patrik Laine and Nikolaj Ehlers and that line was a key part of the team’s deep playoff run, before being eliminated by Vegas.

Now ironically in Vegas and expected to center the team’s second line, Stastny said he spends a lot of his offseason training much differently considering that he’s entering that portion of a players’ career where a decline begins. Stastny told The Athletic’s Ryan Clark (subscription required) that he spends a lot of time focusing on off-ice things, especially his diet.

“Trying to keep up with your diet, trying to stay lean, trying to stay quick because as you get older, you might lose that step,” Stastny said. “The game’s changed from my first year where it was a lot heavier, stronger, touch and grabbing to know where it’s just not as much physical. A lot more skating and you gotta keep with that endurance as much as you can.”

Stastny, who posted 16 goals and 53 points between St. Louis and Winnipeg, expects to join the team’s second line between Alex Tuch and either Erik Haula or Tomas Tatar.

  • David Isaac of the Courier Post interviewed Philadelphia Flyers head coach Ron Hextall, who said in the Q&A that the team looked into upgrading their bottom-six this year in hopes of improving their penalty kill, which struggled last year, but felt they were unable to do that. The special teams’ unit played better over the final 25 games, according to Hextall, but he would still like to add a penalty killing forward, if possible. “I’m open to it, but it would probably be more of a lateral move on the market rather than a free agent,” Hextall said. “It would be a forward. We’d like to add a penalty-killing forward but to this point there’s been nothing there that’s made enough sense for us to move.”
  • The Edmonton Journal’s Kurt Leavins wonders if this is the year that defenseman Oscar Klefbom puts it all together, especially now that reports are coming in that say he’s 100 percent already with just a couple of weeks before training camp. The 25-year-old had a breakout season in 2016-17 when he tallied 12 goals and 38 points, but struggled through an injury-plagued 2017-18. Now healthy, the scribe believes this is the year he takes that next step.

What To Expect From Tomas Tatar In 2018-19

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A seemingly innocuous interview with Vegas Golden Knights free agency prize Paul Stastny actually ended up revealing quite a lot about the strange state of one of his new teammates. SinBin’s Ken Boehlke writes that Stastny, while appearing on the Golden Knight’s podcast, was asked who he believes his line mates could be this season. His answer: Alex Tuch and Erik Haula. Stastny made no mention of Vegas’ big trade deadline acquisition, Tomas Tatar, and Boehlke infers that this could mean trouble for the young forward moving forward.

If Stastny’s prediction proves true, then he, Tuch, and Haula would join the surefire top line of William Karlsson between Jonathan Marchessault and Reilly Smith in the Knights’ top six. That would leave Tatar with a bottom-six role and Vegas is not exactly shaping up to have an offensively inclined group in that bottom half. Tatar will be joined by veteran grinders Ryan Reaves, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, and William Carrier who all seem slotted for a fourth line role. That would leave Tatar with Cody Eakin and one of a number of prospects or fringe players on the third line. Among the candidates are Oscar Lindberg, Tomas Nosek, Ryan Carpenter, Daniel Carr, Tomas Hyka, and Curtis McKenzie. None of that group truly inspires confidence as the final piece of the line with Tatar and Eakin. This begs the question: what role does Tatar have on this team?

Even if you don’t put much stock in Stastny’s comments, there is no doubting that Tatar has been less than impressive since being traded to Vegas from the Detroit Red Wings. The three-time 45+ point scorer only registered six points in 20 games down the stretch for the Knights and was a frequent healthy scratch in the postseason, adding just two points in eight games. Tatar is a strong possession player who has proven to be a capable goal scorer in the past, but lacks the two-way game to make a living in a checking role. At $5.3MM, in addition to the trade cost of three high draft picks, it is hard to imagine that Vegas wants to play him in that role either. Tatar needs to find a fit on this roster, either on the second line with Stastny or as a transformative presence on the third line. The Golden Knights are far more shallow up front this season than they were last year and can hardly afford to deal with ineffective or inconsistent play from their biggest trade investment to date. If Tatar does struggle, he may easily wind up wearing out his welcome with the Knights as he did with the Red Wings.

Pacific Notes: Flames Forwards, Haula, Horvat

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The Calgary Flames have made quite a few moves this offseason in hopes of reshaping their roster after a dismal second half that saw them out of the playoffs. However, the Flames new signings may have caused other issues that the team will have to deal with in a few years — namely the expansion draft.

The Athletic’s Kent Wilson (subscription required) writes that the team might be in trouble if/when the unnamed Seattle franchise has its expansion draft in 2020. Assuming all the rules are the same as they were for Vegas, Calgary will have a logjam of players at the forward position and won’t have enough spaces to protect some quality players.

Assuming there are no changes among forwards over the next two seasons, the team would likely protect or have to protect Johnny Gaudreau, Sean Monahan, Elias Lindholm, Mikael Backlund, Matthew Tkachuk, James Neal as six forwards they would likely protect. That would leave one spot open for players like Derek Ryan, Mark Jankowski, Sam Bennett, Andrew Mangiapane and Spencer Foo, which could leave several high quality players exposed to Seattle. Unless the team addresses these issues, the team may be giving Seattle a solid player.

  • Adam Hill of the Las Vegas Review-Journal writes that the Vegas Golden Knights still haven’t decided on a plan for what they intend to do with second-line center Erik Haula after they signed Paul Stastny away from the Winnipeg Jets this offseason. Haula had a great offensive season, centering the second line with 29 goals and 55 points, but the line (along with the departed Neal and David Perron) struggled defensively. In fact, Vegas’ second line was one of the worst defensive lines in the league. “It produced, but the goals against per 60 minutes was not good enough,” said Vegas general manager George McPhee. “We were actually dead last among second lines in the league. You can just sort of look the other way on that or you can address it. We’re trying to address it.”
  • J.D. Burke of The Athletic (subscription required) writes that he believes that Vancouver Canucks center Bo Horvat should continue to take his game to a new level as he has every year. However, if there is one area of Horvat’s game that could use some upgrading it would be his defensive game as that’s the weakest part of his game. The 23-year-old took his scoring game up a notch last year when he potted 22 goals, an improvement on his previous career-high of 20 goals, but Horvat missed 15 games last year, so to put up a career-high in goals is key. However, with the additions of players like Jay Beagle, Antoine Roussel and Tim Schaller, maybe defense won’t be that imperative.

Salary Cap Deep Dive: Vegas Golden Knights

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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 2018-19 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: $70,812,500 (under the $79.5MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

F Alex Tuch (One year remaining, $925K)
D Zach Whitecloud (Two years remaining, $925K)

Among the many things that went right for Vegas was the play of Tuch, who was a surprise in training camp and quickly earned himself a full-time role. The 6-foot-4, 222-pound winger had an impressive rookie season with the Golden Knights, scoring 15 goals and 37 points with much of his playing time coming with the team’s third line. He only improved over time, showing an ability to get into the corners and extend offensive opportunities for the team. He tallied six goals in the playoffs as well, which allowed the Golden Knights to let go veterans James Neal and David Perron, knowing that the 22-year-old Tuch is ready to take his game to the next level. With one year remaining on his entry-level deal, expect him to become a key restricted free agent for the team next season.

Potential Bonuses

Tuch: $93K
Whitecloud: $93K

Total: $186K

One Year Remaining, Non Entry-Level

F William Karlsson ($5.25MM, RFA)
D Nate Schmidt ($2.23MM, UFA)
F Oscar Lindberg ($1.7MM, UFA)
D Deryk Engelland ($1.5MM, UFA)
F Pierre-Edouard Bellemare ($1.45MM, UFA)
F Tomas Nosek ($963K, RFA)
F Ryan Carpenter ($650K, UFA)
D Brad Hunt ($650K, UFA)
G Malcolm Subban ($650K, RFA)

The most important piece the Vegas Golden Knights need to lock up is Karlsson, who just signed a one-year deal with Vegas Saturday. However, now the team has just one year to lock up Karlsson, the team’s top scorer, to a long-term extension. Less than a year, actually, as the team can’t agree to an extension until Jan. 1, 2019. That gives Vegas time to see how 25-year-old will respond in his second year. After piling up 43 goals last season (and seven more in the playoffs), the team wants to see that he can put up similar numbers before handing him a major deal considering the most he’s ever scored in his NHL career was nine goals.

The team will also have to lock up the speedy Schmidt, as well to a long-term deal at some point. The 27-year-old was a key figure on the Golden Knights defense, posting career highs of five goals and 36 points, but also showed his mettle in the playoffs, putting up another three goals and seven points. He could easily get a similar deal to the one that Miller signed with the team (four years, $15.5MM) earlier in the offseason. With an influx of prospects likely to hitting the team for the 2019-20 season, several veterans will have to prove they deserve new contracts this coming  year, including Lindberg, Bellemare, Engelland, Carpenter, Hunt and Subban, although unless someone has a breakout year, none should cost the team too much.

Two Years Remaining

F David Clarkson ($5.25MM, UFA)
F Cody Eakin ($3.85MM, UFA)
F Ryan Reaves ($2.78MM, UFA)
F Erik Haula ($2.75MM, UFA)
D Nick Holden ($2.2MM, UFA)
D Jonathon Merrill ($1.38MM, UFA)
F William Carrier ($725K, RFA)

The team likely will have to pay up if they want to keep Haula. The team’s second-line center may move to the third line now that the team locked up Stastny to a free agent deal. However, if Huala can continue to produce like he did last season, the 27-year-old should be able to fetch a nice contract. He had a career-high in goals last season as he scored 29 and 55 points.

The team should also recoup some of their losses as well in two years as Clarkson’s deal will expire, so that will free up $5.25MM for the team as the team currently has to wait till the start of the season before they can place his contract on LTIR. Others like Eakin and Reaves will likely have to earn another deal over the next two seasons. Both had solid showings for Vegas this year, but will have to prove their consistency. While Reaves deal looks overpaid on paper, the team opted to give him three years worth of money as long as he only signed for two years.

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Western Notes: Niederreiter, Dumba, Golden Knights, Gusev

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The Minnesota Wild were expected to shake things up after another disappointing playoff run and made that clear when they replaced general manager Chuck Fletcher with Paul Fenton. One forgets that Fenton as the assistant to David Poile in Nashville for the past 20 years, has been involved in many blockbuster trades in that time. So, don’t be surprised to see the team make several big moves this offseason.

The Athletic’s Mike Russo (subscription required) delves into several potential trade candidates and what the chances are that Fenton might move them. At the top of the list is winger Nino Niederreiter, who might be the perfect trade candidate. After three 20-goal seasons, Niederreiter came up two goals short this year, but also missed 19 games this year with a high ankle sprain and a broken fibula. Unfortunately, Niederreiter also has struggled in the playoffs recently combining for just one assist in 10 playoff games over the past two seasons. However, the fact that he’s 25 years old and is locked in for another four years at $5.25MM AAV could make him the team’s biggest trade chip. Throw in the fact that Jason Zucker and Zach Parise are listed as the top two left wings on the team, he is expendable.

While he analyzes a number of trade candidates in the article, Russo suggests that despite going well out of their way to protect Mathew Dumba at the expansion draft last season (that cost them Erik Haula and Alex Tuch), Dumba rewarded the team with a career highs in goals and assists with 14 goals and 36 assists. Now a restricted free agent, the team must decide whether Dumba is worth a long-term deal and if not, the Wild might want to move him while his value is high.

  • With the team’s success this year, Vegas Golden Knights general manager George McPhee refers to their 2017 first-round picks, Cody Glass, Nick Suzuki and Erik Brannstrom as “long shots” to making the team next season, according to SinBinVegas. If one of those picks were to make the Golden Knights roster out of training camp, they would have to be “really, really good.” McPhee also said he doesn’t believe teenagers belong in the NHL and the team must take more responsibility to develop their prospects properly. “Smartest thing we can do is take our time and develop them,” McPhee said.
  • Sticking with the Vegas Golden Knights, David Schoen of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports that McPhee said the team continues to pursue Russian winger Nikita Gusev, who the team acquired in an expansion-day deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning last year. The 25-year-old has scored 46 goals and tallied 133 points over the past two seasons in the KHL. He still has one more year remaining on a two-year deal he signed last summer, so the Golden Knights have to wait a while longer. “He’s got another year on his deal and then we’ll see what we can do. He’s a talented guy and we’ll do what we can to get him here. We’ve talked to him, and we’ll continue to talk to him,” McPhee said.

Playoff Notes: Theodore, Lineup Changes, Orpik, Smith-Pelly, Beagle

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Vegas Golden Knights head coach Gerard Gallant showed why he is considered to be a players’ coach when he was asked Sunday about the performance of 22-year-old Shea Theodore, according to the Associated Press’ Stephen Whyno. The young blueliner has struggled mightily in the Stanley Cup Finals, having been on the ice for four of the team’s past six goals. In Game 3 alone, he made a questionable decision that created an odd-man rush on Evgeny Kuznetsov’s goal and then followed that up with a bad turnover that allowed Devante Smith-Pelly to score the goal that sealed the win.

Regardless, despite forcing the youngster to skip one shift, the veteran coach defended his player.

“Did Shea do something real bad? He plays the game like everybody else,” Gallant said Sunday in a passionate defense of Theodore. “He made a couple mistakes, they ended up in the back of our net. A lot of guys make mistakes in hockey games and they don’t end up in the back of the net. Shea’s a 22-year-old kid who I love. He’s a great player. He’s going to be a star in this league.”

Theodore is expected to continue playing next to Deryk Engelland in Game 4. Whyno said that Engelland reassured Theodore and told him to simplify his game.

  • Gallant also said the team might make some lineup changes for Game 4 on Monday. There is lots of speculation the team may bring back wingers William Carrier and Tomas Tatar, who both have played sporadically throughout the playoffs for Vegas. There is also talk the team might shuffle some of their middle lines. The team’s second line of Erik Haula, James Neal and David Perron has struggled in the Stanley Cup Finals. In three games, they have gone for a combined one goal, two assists, 10 shots on goal, 14 shots missed or blocked and a minus-9 rating. NHL Network’s Brian Lawton reports that the team could promote Alex Tuch to the second line in order to change things up.
  • Despite rumors that he suffered a concussion on a reverse hit from Neal, Washington Capitals defenseman Brooks Orpik had the wind knocked out of him, according to Whyno. The veteran defenseman said a concussion was never the issue as he couldn’t breathe initially after the hit. He is expected to be ready for Monday’s Game 4. Orpik was never checked for a concussion and the Washington Post’s Adam Kilgore writes that the NHL failed once again to show the world that they are on top of handling concussions as Orpik was allowed to return immediately on the next shift.
  • Two key contributors for the Capitals in Game 3 were Smith-Pelly, who scored the insurance goal, and Jay Beagle who assisted on two goals as well as had a 61 percent face-off success rate was another key factor for the Capitals. Both will be unrestricted free agents and with the Capitals spending much of their time focused on John Carlson’s upcoming free agency and their lack of salary cap space, one has to wonder whether both Smith-Pelly and Beagle’s strong play might force the team to allow them to leave this offseason.

Minnesota Wild GM Chuck Fletcher May Not Get Extension

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After suffering a embarrassing 5-0 defeat Friday that knocked the Minnesota Wild from the first-round of the playoffs, there is likely to be consequences going forward. At least that’s what The Athletic’s Mike Russo (subscription required) writes, suggesting that general manager Chuck Fletcher’s job may not have the security it did a couple of weeks ago. The GM is in the last year of his deal and is awaiting a contract extension.

For the third consecutive season, the Wild have exited after the first-round and have lost 16 of their last 20 playoff games, suggesting that Fletcher may not have assembled the right players meant to sustain a run throughout the playoffs. Granted, Fletcher has done a lot of good in Minnesota. His team’s have reached the playoffs for six straight seasons and the team has reached 100 points in three of the last four seasons. On top of that, key injuries have hampered this year’ playoff hopes, including losses to defensemen Ryan Suter and most recently Zach Parise.

Russo wrote a story 10 days ago, suggesting owner Craig Leipold felt Fletcher deserved an extension and was ready to extend Fletcher after the playoffs, but Russo now says he’s heard that Leipold might be rethinking that.

Much could have to do with recent moves over the last year. One major blunder that is often pointed out is that the Vegas Golden Knights walked away with two top-six forwards from the expansion draft in Erik Haula and Alex Tuch so the Wild could protect some of their younger defensemen. Both players are starting on the Golden Knights’ second line on a team that has advanced farther than Minnesota recently in just one year of existence, thanks in part to the performances of those two players. Haula, who had 15 goals and 11 assists last year in Minnesota, broke out for a 29-goal, 55-point season in Vegas, while the 20-year-old Tuch had 15 goals and 22 assists in his rookie campaign.

Last season at the trade deadline, the team sent their 2017 first-round pick to Arizona for rentals Martin Hanzal and Ryan White, neither of which made much of an impact for the team’s playoff fortunes that year. The team also traded Jason Pominville and Marco Scandella for Marcus Foligno and Tyler Ennis in the offseason. Foligno produced one of his worst NHL season with just eight goals, while Ennis was a healthy scratch four out of five times in the playoffs and is a buyout candidate this summer at $4.6MM. Other deals, including signing defenseman Kyle Quincey and then quickly burying him in the AHL (although he never played a game there) after just 18 games.

The franchise will likely take a few days before making any decisions on their management.

 

Snapshots: Pettersson, Haula, Lundqvist

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Canucks prospect Elias Pettersson is likely to play on the wing to start next season if he makes the NHL roster, GM Jim Benning acknowledged to Postmedia’s Ben Kuzma.  Pettersson, a natural center, spent most of this past season on the wing so it’s hard to foresee him switching back to the tougher position while trying to get used to playing at the NHL level.  Accordingly, Kuzma speculates that Vancouver could be in the market this offseason for a veteran on a short-term deal that could act as a bridge for players like Pettersson and Adam Gaudette to allow them to ease into NHL duty.

Elsewhere around the league:

  • Golden Knights center Erik Haula will not face a disciplinary hearing for an incident involving Kings center Anze Kopitar on Sunday, notes Steve Carp of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.  After being knocked down, Haula hit Kopitar in the face with what appeared to have been the butt-end of his stick but a league spokesman stated that there were no plans to review the play.  That means that Haula will be available as Vegas goes for the first round sweep on Tuesday night.
  • Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist has declined an invitation to join Team Sweden for the upcoming World Championships, notes Larry Brooks of the New York Post.  The veteran has been battling a knee issue that was initially sustained last year in that tournament although he still played in 63 games for New York this season.  Brooks reports that Lundqvist will receive platelet-rich plasma treatment and will rest for around the next three weeks before kicking off his offseason training routine.

Trade Candidate: David Perron

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With the trade deadline approaching, we will be profiling several players in the weeks ahead that have a good chance to be dealt by February 26th.

Ever since the Vegas Golden Knights were contructed, the plan had always been to build through the draft, but add a few veteran players they could move at the trade deadline. While James Neal was an obvious choice when the team selected him from Nashville Predators, no one was as confident that veteran winger David Perron would be as successful. Yet one season in, Perron is having a one of his best seasons of his career. The question now is does the team still want to trade him?

Contract

Jan 19, 2018; Sunrise, FL, USA; Vegas Golden Knights left wing James Neal (18) reacts after a goal by left wing David Perron (not pictured) against the Florida Panthers in the first period at BB&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Robert Mayer-USA TODAY Sports

Perron is in the final season of a two-year, $7.5MM contract—$3.75MM cap hit, $3.75MM salary that he signed with the St. Louis Blues. He will be a UFA in July, and a modified no-trade clause in which he can submit three teams he doesn’t want to be traded to.

2017-18

Perron has been fantastic on the Golden Knights’ second line along with Neal and Erik Haula this season. Acquired via the expansion draft from St. Louis, the original plan had been to move him at the trade deadline, but instead, he’s made himself a key top-six player on a team that has the best record in the Western Conference. While he has just 13 goals this year, that’s still on target for his best goal-scoring season since 2013-14 when he potted 28 goals when he was with the Edmonton Oilers.

However, what makes his game stand out more than anything is his ability to move the puck. His 36 assists puts him already at 49 points with still almost a third of a season left. That already gives him more points than he’s had since that 2013-14 season in Edmonton. Add that to his clutch play in key moments, which includes four game-winning goals and he’s become too good to move.

Season Stats

48 GP, 13 goals, 36 assists, 49 points, +7 rating, 36 PIM, 89 shots, 17:42 ATOI, 48.9 CF%

Potential Suitors

At this point, almost any team might want to get a hold of Perron as a player rental for the upcoming playoffs. Even at $3.75MM, that’s a pretty good deal for a 29-year-old player having a great season. However, there is little chatter considering where the Golden Knights stand at present. General manager George McPhee has been non-committal to whether they intend to be buyers or sellers, but most believe they won’t be sellers.

Likelihood Of A Trade

Extremely unlikely. While you can never say never, Perron is a fixture for a team that looks ready to make a deep playoff run in their first-ever season, which no one predicted. With the team’s chemistry operating at peak efficiency, moving one of their key pieces could wreck their success. Once considered a trade deadline candidate, it looks like Vegas will hold onto him as their own player rental. While there has been little early indication that Vegas intends to extend Perron’s contract, that’s still a possibility as well.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Trade Candidates: James Neal

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With the trade deadline approaching, we will be profiling several players in the weeks ahead that have a good chance to be dealt by February 26th.

The Vegas Golden Knights had everything set up perfectly at the beginning of the season. They acquired a number of extra picks through the expansion draft for the 2017, 2019 and 2020 drafts and had an abundance of rental players they could trade off at the trade deadline to add picks for the upcoming 2018 draft, including James Neal. Instead, the team took off and is currently the top team in the Western Conference. So, will the Golden Knights consider trading him?

Contract

Neal is entering the final year of a six-year, $30MM ($5MM AAV) that he signed back in 2012 when he was still with the Pittsburgh Penguins. He does have a Modified No Trade Clause in which he can list eight team he cannot be traded to.

2017-18

Neal is on pace for a very strong season as he has been an integral part to the the team’s second line alongside center Erik Haula and winger David Perron. Neal has 22 goals already this year in just 48 games, just one goal shy of tying last year’s total of 23 when he was with the Nashville Predators. His success garnered him a spot in the all-star game today. Assuming he keeps up his success, Neal is on pace for one of his best goal-scoring seasons, although his team-high is 40 goals back with Pittsburgh in the 2011-12 season.

Another positive is that the winger has shown consistency throughout the season. Besides a small scoreless streak in December, he has shown himself to be a player the Golden Knights can count on during most games. In his last eight games, he has put up five goals.

Season Stats

48 GP, 22 goals, 12 assists, 34 points, +1 rating, 20 PIM, 17:26 ATOI, 53.2 CF%

Potential Suitors

Neal would likely be a great fit to a number of teams if the Golden Knights were truly interested in moving on from the winger. A team like Tampa Bay, who might want to add one more key piece wouldn’t complain if they could add Neal to their second of third line as a final piece for their title run this year. However, many teams are looking for goal scorers for the playoff run, so if Vegas chose to move him, they would likely get a number of bidders for him.

Likelihood of a Trade

The plan would have worked perfectly had Vegas performed like everyone thought an expansion franchise would. However, at this point, there is little to no chance that Neal goes anywhere as the team is on a title run of their own. Moving him might easily break up the team’s winning chemistry. While the team has said they are focused on locking up Neal, who is looking to score big on one final contract at age 30, there has been no updates on negotiations, suggesting that none have truly started or the team is having trouble finding terms that both sides are amenable to. However, general manager George McPhee has already said that Neal isn’t going anywhere this year, so the worst case scenario is the team will use him as their own rental player. Of course, if they could find a way to get a similar player back, anything is possible, but a deal remains highly doubtful. He is likely staying in Vegas for the stretch run.

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