Karlsson to Vegas? It makes some sense
Place a bet on Vegas.
If you run the numbers, a Karlsson-Karlsson daily double makes sense for the Golden Knights.
As miserable as life is for hockey fans in Ottawa — sort of like death by a thousand cuts as Senators players are sold off piece by piece — Knights fans have hit the jackpot in the club’s expansion season.
They’ve already got a 33-goal scorer in William Karlsson, who is part of an incredibly balanced group of forwards. They also have the cards to make a trade-deadline play for Senators captain Erik Karlsson to put an all-star on the blue-line, a deal that might just put them over the top.
Here, Sens fans might never recover, or — if you believe the endless threats — never return to Canadian Tire Centre. Losing the face of the franchise would leave a hollow feeling as big as the void when Daniel Alfredsson left for Detroit.
Owner Eugene Melnyk’s standing in the community would be akin to where Dollar Bill Wirtz stood in the minds of Chicago fans in the final days of his ownership of the Blackhawks.
After the euphoria of the playoffs nine months ago, the idea of the Sens moving on without Karlsson would have seemed ludicrous.
Amazing what can happen with a combination of weak goaltending and a questionable management or coaching decision here or there, all magnified by a stubborn owner who disrespects the franchise’s fans over and over again. That goes the other way, too: The sign of the fans’ disrespect is #MelnykOut, and it’s gaining ground by the day.
But as players are fond of saying, it is what it is.
If the right offer is in place today, Karlsson is gone. Viva Las Vegas, anyone? Let’s begin with the fact that the Knights can afford to take on the $33 million remaining on Bobby Ryan’s contract, believed to be part of Senators GM Pierre Dorion’s mandate in any Karlsson trade. On the surface, anyway, there’s no need for a transfer of money in a side deal or two to a third or fourth team.
The Knights have 10 selections in the first two rounds of the 2018, 2019 and 2020 entry drafts — three first-round picks and seven second-round choices, most acquired through the expansion draft process. Due to the fact Vegas is at the top of the standings, the first-round selection this summer would be a late, late pick, regardless of the post-season.
Of the current roster, Dorion would likely start with asking for 22-year-old defenceman Shea Theodore, Anaheim’s first selection in 2013, who has four goals and 14 assists in 42 games with Vegas.
As for the Knights’ prospect pool, it includes junior stars Cody Glass, Nick Suzuki and Nicolas Hague. There would be other pieces involved, of course, but the point here is simply to suggest that there could be a framework to make something happen.
The Tampa Bay Lightning, among others, have an interest in Karlsson, but from everything we’ve seen or heard in the past few days, GM Steve Yzerman is unwilling to remove a major piece of his lineup in order to secure the Senators defenceman.
Maybe he’s bluffing, but Yzerman has suggested there is no point in talking about Brayden Point, the 21-year-old centre who already has 25 goals and 54 points, or 19-year-old defenceman Mikhail Sergachev, the two young stars that Dorion would be most interested in acquiring.
If a Karlsson deal doesn’t happen today, the final six weeks of the season are going to be odd. The Senators have made it clear they are looking for a deal, meaning that it will be a waiting game for the process to start up again once the playoffs end.