We were all privileged to experience a moment in sports history that will remain with us forever. The Vegas Golden Knights accomplished just about everything they possibly could have and more. They fell just three games short of completing the impossible — winning the Stanley Cup in their first year.
So what can we hope for and expect in their second year? Will anything short of a return to the Stanley Cup Finals be a disappointment?
The answer to the second question is a resounding “no!” The Golden Knights are built for continued success and deep runs in the playoffs over the next five years, if not longer. They’re a blend of veterans and leaders who still have a few seasons left in their legs, the surprisingly unrecognized talent in their top six forwards, and the hardest-working and perhaps best fourth line in the league. Add to that a world-class goaltender coming off a career year and five prospects who appear poised to crack the VGK this season or next.
The prospects of the VGK have not had any NHL time other than Zach Whitecloud, who appeared in a game against Edmonton and was a +3 for the game, even though the VGK lost 4-3 — nice result, but too small of a sample size on which to make much of a judgment.
The defensemen of the VGK pretty much remain intact. Only Luca Sbisa is missing and he had a less than stellar performance in the Finals (especially in Game 5, in which he turned over the puck on the tying and winning goals with Vegas leading going into the third period).
Vegas lost James Neal and David Perron, while picking up power forward Paul Stastny from the Winnipeg Jets. Stastny scored 16 goals and added 37 assists for 53 points in 82 games.
The VGK also acquired defenseman Nick Holden and resigned Ryan Reaves, who fit in well on the fourth line in the playoffs.
The rumors of defenseman Eric Karlsson being added to the Vegas lineup were strong during the entry-level draft and while the unrestricted free agents were in contention. But GM George McPhee apparently held out against Ottawa’s demands for Karlsson: Shea Theodore and Cody Glass, one of the VGK’s highly touted prospects. With Karlsson still in Ottawa, it appears that McPhee may be winning this blinking contest with Ottawa. Every day, McPhee’s position becomes even stronger; if Ottawa can’t swing a deal before the trade deadline, they’ll lose arguably the best offensive defenseman in the NHL for nothing. If and when he hits the open market as a UFA, Vegas is one of the few teams that could sign him without having to dismantle their rosters because of limited cap space.
This is why I believe the immediate future is bright for our second-year team, which will play the Philadelphia Flyers in their first game of the season on October 4 at T-Mobile. Barring any major injuries during training camp or in the exhibition games, the Golden Knights won’t be dramatically different than the team that turned the NHL on its head last season.
It hurts losing Neal and Perron, who contributed to the offensive side of the scoring sheet, though they were both somewhat of a liability defensively. As a matter of fact, the line of Neal, Perron, and Haula was one of the worst rated lines without the puck. The addition of Stastny will help fill the offensive hole that Neal and Perron’s departures have created. If Alex Tuch picks up where he left off and Tomas Tatar finally fits in, this 2018-2019 team will be just as strong as, if not stronger than, we all witnessed in the 2017-2018 season.
The five prospects are Eric Brannstrom (D), the 15th overall pick and just 18 years old; Cody Glass (F), 6th overall and 19 years old; Zach Whitecloud (D), 21 years old; Nic Hague (D), 34th pick overall and 19 years old; and Nick Suzuki (F), 13th overall pick and just 18 years old. Of the five, the two who some believe may have a shot of sticking with the team past training camp are Brannstrom and Whitecloud; both are defensmen and their hopes of playing in the NHL this season will depend on the Karlsson sweepstakes.
Cody Glass and Nick Suzuki still need more time to develop and grow into their bodies. The rigors of the NHL schedule and the required skill level prevent most prospects from stepping into a starting NHL lineup straight from the draft.
Just about every player who gets picked in the first round, whether it’s number one or 30, will probably be compared to a superstar. Every defenseman with good size and a big shot will be the next Chris Pronger or Zdeno Chara. Every goalie will be a mix of Patrick Roy and Dominik Hasek or the next Carey Price. Every forward will have game-breaking ability and be a potential scoring champion.
The reality, though, is that once you get beyond the first few picks in the draft, your odds of finding a regular NHLer, let alone a superstar, drop significantly. So George McPhee holding out on giving up on an unproven prospect for a proven talent like Karlsson is a gamble. But after last year, how can anyone question McPhee’s vision and opinion on potential talent?
I like the look of the potential 2018-2019 VGK team. I loved the look of the 2017-2018 VGK and smile when I think about the 102 games they treated us to.
If you’d like to relive that season, you can! My book about the miraculous season, from the moment that Joe and Gavin Maloof started pursuing an NHL team for Las Vegas to Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Finals, will be back from the printer next week. You can pre-order it at a nice $9 discount by clicking here.
Go 2018-2019 Knights Go!
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Not So Fast: Kevin while I do respect your opinion I do have to point out to you that the entire roster for the VGK were in fact “CASTOFFS” some who were if you take him instead of our better player we will throw in another player into the deal. GM McPhee took that option and with a excellent knowledge of other team talent pool formed a team of “CASTOFFS” Something else needs to be noted there has not been any new teams added to the league since 2000. So the other 30 teams had 17 years to not only develop their rosters but were rich in talent. McPhee had that advantage working for the VGK and he hit a home run. The salary cap issue gave us Fleury and championship teams are built from the goaltender out. To say this team was just a good team that performed well is unfair. The other 30 teams had these players any many more in their system and few accomplished what the 2017-2018 VGK did.