After trading franchise original Reilly Smith to Pittsburgh and signing Ivan Barbashev to a five-year extension on what was a busy Wednesday, the Vegas Golden Knights may seem to have gotten much of their offseason work out of the way early. However, retaining one $5 million forward at the expense of another only creates further lineup holes rather than addressing any.
So, as the Golden Knights look to get their roster set to defend the Stanley Cup, George McPhee, Kelly McCrimmon, and company now have more work to do in their bid for another ring. With the NHL Entry Draft now in the rearview mirror and with free agency looming, let’s break down where Vegas stands as a euphoric 2022-23 season gives way to focus on 2023-24.
Barbashev Stays, Smith Goes
While the lingering glow of the Cup victory has probably quieted some dissenting voices in regard to the unceremonious departure of another Vegas Original, the trade of Smith and re-signing of trade deadline acquisition Barbashev nevertheless marks a bold stroke to start the offseason. This isn’t about cap savings, considering Barbashev received the same $5 million annual cap hit that Smith was slated to earn. Instead, this is about prioritizing a younger player and retaining someone, who club management fell in love with.
There is no question that Barbashev represented an incredible boost to the lineup, settling in quickly (six goals and 16 points in 23 regular season games) and putting together a stellar postseason (seven goals and 18 points in 22 games). By signing him to a five-year, $25 million extension shortly after Smith was traded, the Golden Knights are betting that the former St. Louis Blue’s next two seasons at age 27 and 28 will be more productive than Reilly Smith’s at 32 and 33.
The questions, then, come in the deals themselves. Could Smith not have fetched more than a 2024 third-round pick (the same pick Vegas flipped to add sparsely used Teddy Blueger, no less)? Players like Kevin Hayes and Ryan Johansen have recently netted paltry returns in trades, but both men were on far more cumbersome contracts and delivered less last season. Smith’s 26 goals and 56 points last season offered pretty good value on the three-year, $15 contract he signed just last summer.
Speaking of contract value, the five-year term on Barbashev’s deal is puzzling. Only once in seven NHL seasons has the Russian center hit the 20-goal plateau. Sure, he’s a multi-faceted forward who does plenty more than just score goals, but it’s worth wondering whether his value was inflated by riding shotgun alongside Jack Eichel and Jonathan Marchessault through their sensational postseason.
Holes Up Front
Vegas was likely going to have to add depth to its forward corps this offseason, and now the departure of Smith exacerbates the need for more help up front. This could be achieved in any number of ways. In terms of the top six, internal candidates like Chandler Stephenson, Paul Cotter, Michael Amadio, Nicolas Roy or perhaps a re-signed Brett Howden could fill the vacancy created by Smith and hope to find chemistry with the likes of William Karlsson and Mark Stone.
(Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)
That would still likely leave the need for some inexpensive depth forwards, a shopping list item familiar to the Golden Knights that the club has attempted with mixed results. Phil Kessel was a fun, likable part of the dressing room, even while he wasn’t producing much on the ice. Milan Lucic, Patric Hornqvist and Evan Rodrigues would all be examples of the type of tough, battle-tested veteran that could provide depth and even more of a championship pedigree at a reasonable cost.
The most cost-effective path to filling out the depth up front would be to have organizational prospects take advantage of opportunities. But while Vegas has plenty of candidates for such a scenario, those who have gotten looks at the NHL level have struggled to stick around. Last year, none of Pavel Dorofeyev, Jonas Røndbjerg or Jake Leschyshyn, who was later waived, forced their way into a bigger role during their brief stint in Vegas. Perhaps this year will be different.
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The Goaltending Question
There was some initial speculation that some of the cap space freed up by the Smith trade would be earmarked to address the crease, possibly via an Adin Hill extension. Then Barbashev swallowed up all of that space. Therefore, we’re back where we were before and have been numerous times in the past: with questions to answer in net and limited resources to work with.
This time feels different, though. While last season turned into an outright panic following the announcement of Robin Lehner’s double-hip surgery, this offseason brings a quiet confidence, even with uncertainty. Amidst an endless churn of injuries in net, it seemed like anyone the club put between the pipes stepped up, from Logan Thompson to Laurent Brossoit to the Stanley Cup hero, Hill. Neither Brossoit nor Hill are under contract, but the Golden Knights can approach the summer with the knowledge that standout goaltending can be found in unlikely places.
Thompson is under contract for two more years at just over $750,000 per season and will likely fill a tandem role, at the very least. That leaves a need for an established No. 2 or a 1A. Vegas would likely be comfortable with either Brossoit or Hill in that role, particularly if the market for the other becomes prohibitively expensive. There’s also the lingering presence of Lehner, still on the books for two more years at $5 million each. If his cap hit can no longer be stashed in LTIR, the front office will need to figure out what to do with the 31-year-old.
It’s barely been two weeks since the Golden Knights secured the franchise’s first Cup, but it was a short-lived celebration for club management. One of the all-time leading scorers is already out the door, and arguably their biggest free agent has already been reeled back in. For McPhee and McCrimmon, the focus is already back on winning the next one.