PATIENCE SCHMATIENCE
We all assumed Vegas would struggle and have to build slowly through the draft. Ha!
IF, AT THE START
of the season, you were told there would be a 35-point gap between the expansion Vegas Golden Knights and the Western Conference-favorite Edmonton Oilers, you might have responded: “Wow, Vegas will do well getting more than 70 points.” What the Golden Knights did this season is truly remarkable. What’s more, they’ve already assembled the 15th-best list of prospects according to Future Watch, and they have a plethora of draft picks in the next few years. IMMEDIATE NEEDS: Virtually every Golden Knights blueliner is playing a pair above his weight class. That’s a nice way of saying Vegas lacks one or two top-pair defenders. In Nate Schmidt and Shea Theodore, the Golden Knights have rising stars, but no one who yet strikes fear on the power play. Imagine when they get that? LONG-TERM NEEDS: The boyish face of Marc-Andre Fleury belies his 33 years. If you watched him this year, you’d have little concern about his advancing age. But few goalies don’t see a decline after age 36. Malcolm Subban and Oscar Dansk may not have No. 1 upside. An early pick should be used on a goalie. CAP SITUATION: Almost $20 million this season was occupied by players who hardly laced up their skates: David Clarkson, Mikhail Grabovski, Jason Garrison, Clayton Stoner. As their deals expire, more capital will be spent to secure the real difference-makers. But GM George McPhee can’t go crazy hoping past performance assures future performance.
IN THE SYSTEM 2018-19:
Cody Glass has the offensive instincts to be a point-pergame right-shot center in the NHL once his maturity and two-way game round into form. After almost 200 points in two WHL seasons, the Golden Knights will want to fast-track him as a 19-year-old. He’ll likely start on the third line. DID YOU KNOW: The wild card in the Vegas prospect stable is 25-year-old Russian left winger Nikita Gusev. He has shown in the KHL and Olympics that he has NHL tools. The only question is, does he have NHL aspirations? It’ll take a good pitchman to get him to Vegas.