Vegas Could Have Had Such A Better Team

[SCampo98]

As most people on here probably did, I mocked up the Golden Knights roster on TSN before the draft last night. In the end, I was pretty surprised as how good they could be while still staying within the cap and abiding by the expansion draft rules. Here is the team I picked, which abides by all of the rules set out. Players with an asterisk were chosen by the Golden Nights last night:

Forwards
----------
Kruger (CHI)
**Marchessault (FLA)
Bailey (NYI)
Grabner (NYR)
**Neal (NSH)
**Perron (STL)
Anderson (CBJ)
Burmistrov (ARI)
Bennett (NJD)
Boucher (VAN)
**Leipsic (TOR)
Chiasson (DAL)
Leier (PHI)
Stempniak (CAR)
Grigorenko (COL)
Gaborik (LAK)

Defenceman
--------------
Vatanen (ANA)
Dumba (MIN)
Enstrom (WPG)
**Methot (OTT)
Bogosian (BUF)
Oleksiak (DAL)
Ouellett (DET)
Nesterov (MTL)
Sustr (TBL)
Dillon (SJS)

Goalies
----------
**Fleury (PIT)
Grubauer (WSH)
Brossoit (EDM)
Subban (BOS)



IMHO, I think the trades with ANA to get Theodore an the trade with TBL to get Gusev were the only ones worth doing. I don't think any of the other trades, including where they got a 1st rounder this year, would have been worth making. If you substitute Vatanen for Theodore above, I still think Vegas would have one of the better top sixes in the league. I just don't get why Vegas picked the players they did (Pickard, Thorburn, Garrison, Berube, Engelland, Stoner, etc.)

If any of you guys did mock drafts, were your teams closer to the one I made or closer the the actual product Vegas revealed last night?

Click to read more...

 

[TomasHertlsRooster]

I guess nobody will ever understand that DUMBA AND VATANEN WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN EXPOSED IF THOSE DEALS TO PROTECT THEM WERE NOT MADE

 

[SCampo98]

I guess nobody will ever understand that DUMBA AND VATANEN WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN EXPOSED IF THOSE DEALS TO PROTECT THEM WERE NOT MADE

Like I said in the post, I don't think Tuch is worth more than Dumba, do you?

 

[Brodeur]

As most people on here probably did, I mocked up the Golden Knights roster on TSN before the draft last night. In the end, I was pretty surprised as how good they could be while still staying within the cap and abiding by the expansion draft rules. Here is the team I picked, which abides by all of the rules set out.

Is the goal to have a borderline playoff team off the hop, or getting pieces for a few years down the road?

The Kings staff would probably have been very pleased to have ditched Marian Gaborik's contract. Last I saw, Gaborik won't be ready for training camp as is and possibly longer into the season. Reid Boucher is a bubble NHLer at this point.

Stempniak is a commendable pro, but I'm not sure he's a long term piece who's also in the last year of his contract.

As mentioned, Vatanen wouldn't have been available had a side deal not been in place. The Ducks would have made some other deal rather than lose him for nothing prior to the expansion draft.

 

[pheasant]

Like I said in the post, I don't think Tuch is worth more than Dumba, do you?

It's kind of irrelevant. Because, and I quote:

... DUMBA AND VATANEN WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN EXPOSED IF THOSE DEALS TO PROTECT THEM WERE NOT MADE

 

[Crede777]

Hopefully the NHL doesn't take this as Vegas not having had options for better players. If they do, they might make the next ED rules even more tough for teams to protect quality guys. Then that new team will also just parlay that advantage into draft picks and prospects.

 

[gordie]

You want to lose and build with youth. Getting into the playoffs in a season or two then losing in the first round and then not making the playoffs after that, just creates a atmosphere of hopelessness. You want a core of young talented players and just hope your fanbase is patient.

 

[SCampo98]

It's kind of irrelevant. Because, and I quote:

I'm not sure how hard a concept this is, I'm trying to say that Vegas SHOULDN'T HAVE MADE THE DEAL TO LEAVE DUMBA ALONE.

 

[Mattilaus]

This is really simple, let me break it down:

Vegas: Hey, Minny, we are gonna take Dumba unless you offer us something

Minny: I'll give you Tuch and Haula, if that's not enough, I will just trade Dumba to someone else so you can't take him, take it or leave it

Two possible results:

Vegas says no, Minny trades Dumba away and Vegas does not get Dumba.

OR

Vegas says yes, and here we are.

Either way, Vegas doesn't get Dumba.

Apply this same scenario to any other high value player you think vegas could have gotten had they not made a deal.

 

[TruGr1t]

Tanking even before they've taken the ice.

 

[Finlandia WOAT]

Yes, but you have to realize that Vegas has close to zero prospect support coming within the next 2-4 years. The 4th OA this year is 3-5 years away from being an impact NHL player, and that's the best they have.

They have nothing to replace guys who leave or decline. Yes, they could have been a mediocre-at-best team, and possibly made the playoffs in a weak Pacific, but in 3 years, they'll essentially have what they have now. A bunch of has-beens with zero support incoming.

Might as well get the lean years over with while the honeymoon phase is still in full effect and you don't have to compete with the Raiders.

 

[Crede777]

I'm not sure how hard a concept this is, I'm trying to say that Vegas SHOULDN'T HAVE MADE THE DEAL TO LEAVE DUMBA ALONE.

They obviously made a deal before the roster freeze. If they hadn't, then Minnesota would have offloaded Dumba and there wouldn't have been a deal in the first place.

 

[Menzinger]

They don't want to be good anyways - they'll need to tank for a season or two beyond this year if they ever want to turn into a contender

 

[RedBruin]

I'm not sure how hard a concept this is,

Apparently very hard.

 

[powerstuck]

Did you bother looking if it would fit within the cap ?

There were deals, at least 10. God knows what would have happened if NHL forbid the teams to make deals with Vegas.

 

[SCampo98]

Did you bother looking if it would hit within the cap ?

There were deals, at least 10. God knows what would have happened if NHL forbid the teams to make deals with Vegas.

If Vegas had picked the team I wrote about int he original post, it would have been within cap. Not sure how it would look after trades and signings though.

 

[Mattilaus]

If Vegas had picked the team I wrote about int he original post, it would have been within cap. Not sure how it would look after trades and signings though.

Please see my above explanation as to why this would not have been possible. Lists would not have been the same if the deals had not been made.

 

[pheasant]

I'm not sure how hard a concept this is, I'm trying to say that Vegas SHOULDN'T HAVE MADE THE DEAL TO LEAVE DUMBA ALONE.

In which case Dumba would have been traded to someone other than Vegas. Thus Dumba would not have been exposed to Vegas.

 

[pheasant]

They don't want to be good anyways - they'll need to tank for a season or two beyond this year if they ever want to turn into a contender

They really don't. Vegas losing wont make the picks they acquired any earlier. Ad that to the new draft lotteries and tanking just isn't worth the pain for them.

They will try to win. They won't trade picks to make a push, or anything. But they will try to win.

 

[jdpitt05]

That team is a middle of the road team that hovers around being "ok". Never gets high draft picks and the decent players end up leaving over the next 1-3 years. So you are semi-rebuilding on the fly.

GMGM made a marked decision to go young and acquire future draft picks. Rather than try to win right away. I could see this team looking like Columbus in 5 years.

 

[New Jersey]

they're an expansion franchise.

they get to suck for a few years.

welcome to the national.

 

[Rob Brown]

I'm not sure how hard a concept this is, I'm trying to say that Vegas SHOULDN'T HAVE MADE THE DEAL TO LEAVE DUMBA ALONE.

And he's saying that MINNESOTA WOULD HAVE PROTECTED DUMBA OR MOVED HIM TO ANOTHER TEAM SO THEY DIDN'T LOSE HIM.

Not a hard concept.

 

[Menzinger]

They really don't. Vegas losing wont make the picks they acquired any earlier. Ad that to the new draft lotteries and tanking just isn't worth the pain for them.

They will try to win. They won't trade picks to make a push, or anything. But they will try to win.

They won't have a choice, that lineup is guaranteed bottom 10 team.

And yeah the new rules have gutted the motivation to blatantly tank, but it's still much better to be in the bottom 10 to maximize your lottery odds.

 

[WilliamNylander]

McPhee should've been fired yesterday. No way he lasts 2 years in Vegas.

There is absolutely no reason to take a bunch of garbage when you could take BPA and try to flip the players later.

 

[Mortimer Snerd]

As most people on here probably did, I mocked up the Golden Knights roster on TSN before the draft last night. In the end, I was pretty surprised as how good they could be while still staying within the cap and abiding by the expansion draft rules. Here is the team I picked, which abides by all of the rules set out. Players with an asterisk were chosen by the Golden Nights last night:

Forwards
----------
Kruger (CHI)
**Marchessault (FLA)
Bailey (NYI)
Grabner (NYR)
**Neal (NSH)
**Perron (STL)
Anderson (CBJ)
Burmistrov (ARI)
Bennett (NJD)
Boucher (VAN)
**Leipsic (TOR)
Chiasson (DAL)
Leier (PHI)
Stempniak (CAR)
Grigorenko (COL)
Gaborik (LAK)

Defenceman
--------------
Vatanen (ANA)
Dumba (MIN)
Enstrom (WPG)
**Methot (OTT)
Bogosian (BUF)
Oleksiak (DAL)
Ouellett (DET)
Nesterov (MTL)
Sustr (TBL)
Dillon (SJS)

Goalies
----------
**Fleury (PIT)
Grubauer (WSH)
Brossoit (EDM)
Subban (BOS)



IMHO, I think the trades with ANA to get Theodore an the trade with TBL to get Gusev were the only ones worth doing. I don't think any of the other trades, including where they got a 1st rounder this year, would have been worth making. If you substitute Vatanen for Theodore above, I still think Vegas would have one of the better top sixes in the league. I just don't get why Vegas picked the players they did (Pickard, Thorburn, Garrison, Berube, Engelland, Stoner, etc.)

If any of you guys did mock drafts, were your teams closer to the one I made or closer the the actual product Vegas revealed last night?

You have taken a bunch of players who were simply never available. Being on the exposed list does not mean they were ever actually available. If not for the prearranged deals they would never have been on that list.