Who stays and Who goes? Ranking the tiers on the Golden Knight's roster
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With the NHL season now in the books the off-season is about to kick off, with the start of the NHL buyout window opening on Thursday, followed by the NHL Draft this weekend and the start of the free agency period on Monday. The league already saw a host of big trades before the Stanley Cup Finals even ended, seeing the New Jersey Devils acquiring goalie Jacob Markstrom and last night right before puck-drop in Game 7 the Boston Bruins sent goalie Linus Ullmark to the Ottawa Senators. If that is any sign, the next week should be fun for hockey fans, as the table is set for a flurry of activity.
The Golden Knights are always involved in the mix to acquire top players so it should be no surprise they have been linked to names such as Toronto Maple Leaf's Mitch Marner and Carolina Hurricanes forward Martin Necas. Even if the acquisition isn't quite that large that it would be for those 2 players, Knights GM Kelly McCrimmon could also make smaller moves in efforts to improve depth or free up some more cap space. Whichever direction it goes you can certainly expect for some changes to be made, so without further ado let's get to it.
The not going anywhere tier:
Jack Eichel- This one is easy, the Knight's number one center, 27 years old and a full NMC.
Mark Stone- Yes, Mark Stone is 32 years old and has missed 110 games the last 3 seasons due to injuries. When you consider those factors and that he makes $9.5M for the next 3 years, moving him could be getting ahead of things but the simple fact is not only is he the team captain but he also owns one of those pesky NMC's. Despite all that he scored 53 points in 56 games last season. Moral of the story, Stone isn't going anywhere.
Tomas Hertl- The Golden Knights shocked the hockey world at last season's trade deadline by trading for Hertl right before the buzzer at 3PM. Aside from being newly acquired, Hertl has 6 years remaining on his deal and also owns a NMC.
Ivan Barbashev- Barbashev came exactly as advertised after trading for Barbashev in 2023. Barbashev brings that physical brand of hockey while being able to produce top six production.
Noah Hanifin- In a similiar fashion to Hertl, the Knights just acquired Hanifin this past season and gave him a huge extension. Hanifin goes nowhere.
Alex Pietrangelo-It's hard to believe Pietrangelo just finished his 16th season. The 34 year-old is still playing at a high level and is still the leader of the Knights defense. Pietrangelo also owns a NMC. He's here to stay.
The likely not going anywhere tier:
Shea Theodore- Theodore may very well be the best skating defensemen on the Golden Knight's roster and his ability to move the puck out of the zone is a huge asset. Theodore is entering the final year of his contract this coming season. Vegas doesn't want to move him but if they were able to acquire a talent like Mitch Marner, Theodore would be a strong candidate to go the other way because of his skill and his cap hit of $5.2M. With that said, he's very likely to be on the opening night roster.
William Karlsson- Wild Bill Karlsson is an original misfit and showed his worth in Vegas right off the bat after not getting much of chance to show what he can do in the NHL when he was with the Columbus Blue Jackets. But with the Knights getting a little deeper at center over the years it could be plausible Vegas could look to move Karlsson to better allocate his cap dollars. However, that seems like a long shot.
Nicolas Hague- Hague is only 25 and is still under team control when his contract expires next season. Unless it was for a significant upgrade, he's not being moved.
Brendan Brisson- Vegas has made it a habit over the years trading their previous 1st round picks in Erik Brannstrom, Peyton Krebs, Nick Suzuki, and Cody Glass. So trading top prospects is something Vegas has never shied away from but without having a 1st round pick in 2025 and 2026 at some point you have to start accumulating picks and prospects. Brisson owns high end skill. He will likely be part of the teams future for years to come.
Brayden McNabb- Like Theodore, McNabb has only 1 year left on his contract at great value with only a cap hit of $2.850. Unless they got something they couldn't refuse he will be a fixture on the Knights defense going forward.
Nicolas Roy- Roy is one of those bottom 6 forwards that teams love to have. Can play well in all zones and provide some offense, with Roy posting 41 points last season. With a cap hit of $3M he brings good value too. Similar to McNabb, if they were able to get an elite player in a package he would be a good piece to place into the deal, but short of that Roy is going to be staying in Vegas.
The could very well be moved tier:
Adin Hill- After seeing what fellow goalies in Jacob Markstrom and Linus Ullmark returned in getting 1st round pick's, it is certainly feasible that Vegas could decide to try and cash in on Hill to recoup some assets in the form of draft capital and prospects. Especially being they have 27 year-old Logan Thompson on the roster.
Logan Thompson- When you see goaltenders at a premium in the NHL with many teams looking to shore up the position and have two starting goaltenders on your roster, it would be prudent to possibly look into parlaying one to improve your roster elsewhere. With Thompson being 1 year younger and only making $766k against the cap the Knights could opt to keep Hill, as Thompson would likely net a higher return given his contract and higher pedigree.
Zach Whitecloud- Whitecloud is behind Pietrangelo, Hanifin, Theodore, and McNabb as the Knight's 5th defensemen. Whitecloud also has a cap hit of $2.750. If the Knights wanted to find a cheaper #5 defensemen they could move him, as there are certainly teams in the league where he could likely play a top 4 role.
The rest:
Brett Howden, Keegan Kolesar, Paul Cotter, and Ben Hutton- This group are all fine players but also can very easily be replaced these days with how much skill is in the NHL. It is likely most of that group are on the team next season with maybe one ending up on waivers.