OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post - What Happens In Vegas: A Golden Knights Story

dannibalcorpse · 04-01-2017, 04:15 PM

We’ve now hit a quiet spot on the league calendar - as the dog days of summer heat up, most players are enjoying some leisure time before they really ramp up their training efforts for the next season; meanwhile, in the front offices, GMs have mostly turned their attention from the roster building in the draft and free agency towards setting up that roster for a successful campaign. But, in early July, money was flying around at a breakneck pace, even with this year’s class being seen as a fairly mediocre group of free agents.

Revisiting The Hockey News’ top free agents, we see a majority of them have found new homes and are gearing up for a Cup run:

GOALIES
Brian Elliott - Free Agent as of 8/1/2018
Al Montoya - 2 year, $1.9M deal with Lokomotiv (KHL)
Mikko Koskinen - 2 year, $2.5M deal with Nashville
Chad Johnson - 3 year, $7.47M deal with Arizona
Dominik Hrachovina - 2 year, $1.83M deal with Chicago

DEFENSEMEN
Slava Voynov - 3 year, $7.6M deal with New York Islanders
Jesse Virtanen - 3 years, $4.6M deal with New Jersey
Viktor Antipin - 1 year, $925K deal with Montreal
Luke Schenn - 3 year, $7.1M deal with Edmonton
Thomas Hickey - 3 year, $7.5M with Arizona

LEFT WING
Artemi Panarin - 6 year, $39.2M deal with Ottawa
Rick Nash - 2 year, $13.34M deal with Edmonton
James van Riemsdyk - 3 year, $14.04M deal with San Jose
Daniel Sedin - 1 year, $5M deal with Montreal
Nikita Filatov - 2 year, $2.3M deal with Edmonton

CENTER
Kyle Turris - 3 year, $14.1M deal with New York Islanders
Mikael Backlund - 3 year, $13.8M deal with Winnipeg
Erik Haula - 2 year, $3.4M deal with SKA (KHL)
Lars Eller - Free Agent as of 8/1/2018
Austin Czarnik - 1 year, $845K deal with Calgary

RIGHT WING
Oliver Bjorkstrand - 3 year, $7M deal with Vegas
Patric Hornqvist - 3 year, $11.7M deal with Dallas
Riley Nash - 3 year, $4.9M deal with Montreal
Alexei Makeyev - 3 year, $2.8M deal with Toronto
Brandon Kozun - 2 year, $3.4M deal with Carolina

The biggest surprises from THN’s Top 25 Free Agents are the $2.5M AAV given to Thomas Hickey after an injury- and scratch-plagued year; and almost the exact same contract given to Chad Johnson at 32 years old. Some other notable signings around the league: former Golden Knight Evander Kane signed for 3 years and $11.55M with the New York Rangers, and Marcus Foligno got almost the same contract (3/11.49M) from the Sharks. Defensemen Ian Cole and Nick Holden cashed in with decent contracts - Cole will get $7.5M over three years from Boston, while Holden will get $6.45M over the same term from the Sabres. Wingers David Perron, Richard Panik, and Patrick Maroon took advantage of a weak free agent class to get good later-career deals: Perron got $10.5M from the Hurricanes on a 3 year deal, Panik got a 3 year, $7.3M deal from the Flyers, and Maroon is shipping up to Boston on a 3 year, $7.44M deal.

In Vegas, the biggest surprise was being outbid for the services of Kyle Turris by the New York Islanders. As always, both front offices were tight-lipped when it came to details of the negotiations - insiders say Vegas topped out at $4.6M AAV for 3 years on Turris, while the Isles were slightly ahead, with their reported contract offering $4.68M AAV. GM Dan Hampton didn’t let missing out on Turris take the wind out of his sails, however - he rebounded on July 2 to snag one of the youngest UFAs available, Oliver Bjorkstrand. Oliver is only 23 years old and on his third team in the last year, but Hampton thinks he will offer a nice offensive touch to a team that was in the middle of the pack last year offensively.

The Knights made a few other signings - goalie Mason McDonald, only 22 years old, comes over from Calgary after going 6-5-0 with a 2.96 GAA and .899 SV& in 12 games with the Flames. Matt Carle was signed to offer some veteran depth on the blue line - he played 18 games with Seattle last year and had one goal and six assists. Forward Cristobal Nieves played 26 games for the Rangers last year, contributing one goal and three assists - the man they call “Boo” will now find himself in Vegas in what most suspect will be a 13th forward type role.

Hampton also signed some younger players to add some depth to the AHL team, and hopefully develop some future stars. Ryan Pulock played in three cities last year - Brooklyn, Bridgeport, and Columbus - managing 23 GP at the NHL level and scoring a goal and four assists. He comes to the team on a 3 year, $2.3M two-way contract. Tyler Bertuzzi, son of notorious former player Todd, comes to Vegas after spending last season appearing at all three stops in the Red Wings organization - ECHL Toledo, AHL Grand Rapids, and 3 games with Detroit themselves. Bertuzzi also signed a two way deal that would max out at 2 years and $1.5M.

Lastly, the team picked up some players overlooked in this year’s draft. Center Cameron Hebig scored 41 goals and 88 points for Saskatoon in the WHL last year, and signed a 3 year ELC with an AAV of $575K. Another center, 20 year old Adam Ruzicka, signed an ELC worth an annual $925K after putting up a 34-48-82 line with Sarnia in the OHL. Lastly, LW Martins Dzierkals signed his ELC with a value of $566K per year after scoring 32 goals, dishing out 39 assists, and racking up 135 PIMs with Rouyn-Noranda of the QMJHL. Of the three, Ruzicka grades out as the strongest prospect - the 6’5” Slovakian is already seen as an offensive force, and many think he can become a very good player if he shores up his game on the defensive end.

Trades have been few and far between this offseason, with the most notable happening on July 1st - the Islanders traded Joseph Blandisi (acquired in the Josh Ho-Sang trade last year) to the Winnipeg Jets in exchange for goalie Michael Hutchinson. In Vegas, the only trade they have made involved sending RW Austin Watson (48 GP, 0-7-7, 74 PIMs in 2017-18) to Boston for 20 year old D prospect Kale Clague (70 GP, 3-10-13 with LA/Boston in 2017-18). Clague profiles as an offensively-minded blue liner, and will spend some time in the AHL honing his craft in the upcoming season.

As we push through the summer towards the beginning of training camp and preseason in September, Vegas looks confident in their lineup as it stands - no major shake-ups or additions in the offseason. The team seems content in playing the long game - collecting prospects and building up a strong core of players from the inside out. We’ll check back closer to the new season with a roster preview and predictions for the league!

04-01-2017, 04:15 PM	#17
dannibalcorpse Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Long Island, NY Posts: 168	We’ve now hit a quiet spot on the league calendar - as the dog days of summer heat up, most players are enjoying some leisure time before they really ramp up their training efforts for the next season; meanwhile, in the front offices, GMs have mostly turned their attention from the roster building in the draft and free agency towards setting up that roster for a successful campaign. But, in early July, money was flying around at a breakneck pace, even with this year’s class being seen as a fairly mediocre group of free agents. Revisiting The Hockey News’ top free agents, we see a majority of them have found new homes and are gearing up for a Cup run: GOALIES Brian Elliott - Free Agent as of 8/1/2018 Al Montoya - 2 year, $1.9M deal with Lokomotiv (KHL) Mikko Koskinen - 2 year, $2.5M deal with Nashville Chad Johnson - 3 year, $7.47M deal with Arizona Dominik Hrachovina - 2 year, $1.83M deal with Chicago DEFENSEMEN Slava Voynov - 3 year, $7.6M deal with New York Islanders Jesse Virtanen - 3 years, $4.6M deal with New Jersey Viktor Antipin - 1 year, $925K deal with Montreal Luke Schenn - 3 year, $7.1M deal with Edmonton Thomas Hickey - 3 year, $7.5M with Arizona LEFT WING Artemi Panarin - 6 year, $39.2M deal with Ottawa Rick Nash - 2 year, $13.34M deal with Edmonton James van Riemsdyk - 3 year, $14.04M deal with San Jose Daniel Sedin - 1 year, $5M deal with Montreal Nikita Filatov - 2 year, $2.3M deal with Edmonton CENTER Kyle Turris - 3 year, $14.1M deal with New York Islanders Mikael Backlund - 3 year, $13.8M deal with Winnipeg Erik Haula - 2 year, $3.4M deal with SKA (KHL) Lars Eller - Free Agent as of 8/1/2018 Austin Czarnik - 1 year, $845K deal with Calgary RIGHT WING Oliver Bjorkstrand - 3 year, $7M deal with Vegas Patric Hornqvist - 3 year, $11.7M deal with Dallas Riley Nash - 3 year, $4.9M deal with Montreal Alexei Makeyev - 3 year, $2.8M deal with Toronto Brandon Kozun - 2 year, $3.4M deal with Carolina The biggest surprises from THN’s Top 25 Free Agents are the $2.5M AAV given to Thomas Hickey after an injury- and scratch-plagued year; and almost the exact same contract given to Chad Johnson at 32 years old. Some other notable signings around the league: former Golden Knight Evander Kane signed for 3 years and $11.55M with the New York Rangers, and Marcus Foligno got almost the same contract (3/11.49M) from the Sharks. Defensemen Ian Cole and Nick Holden cashed in with decent contracts - Cole will get $7.5M over three years from Boston, while Holden will get $6.45M over the same term from the Sabres. Wingers David Perron, Richard Panik, and Patrick Maroon took advantage of a weak free agent class to get good later-career deals: Perron got $10.5M from the Hurricanes on a 3 year deal, Panik got a 3 year, $7.3M deal from the Flyers, and Maroon is shipping up to Boston on a 3 year, $7.44M deal. In Vegas, the biggest surprise was being outbid for the services of Kyle Turris by the New York Islanders. As always, both front offices were tight-lipped when it came to details of the negotiations - insiders say Vegas topped out at $4.6M AAV for 3 years on Turris, while the Isles were slightly ahead, with their reported contract offering $4.68M AAV. GM Dan Hampton didn’t let missing out on Turris take the wind out of his sails, however - he rebounded on July 2 to snag one of the youngest UFAs available, Oliver Bjorkstrand. Oliver is only 23 years old and on his third team in the last year, but Hampton thinks he will offer a nice offensive touch to a team that was in the middle of the pack last year offensively. The Knights made a few other signings - goalie Mason McDonald, only 22 years old, comes over from Calgary after going 6-5-0 with a 2.96 GAA and .899 SV& in 12 games with the Flames. Matt Carle was signed to offer some veteran depth on the blue line - he played 18 games with Seattle last year and had one goal and six assists. Forward Cristobal Nieves played 26 games for the Rangers last year, contributing one goal and three assists - the man they call “Boo” will now find himself in Vegas in what most suspect will be a 13th forward type role. Hampton also signed some younger players to add some depth to the AHL team, and hopefully develop some future stars. Ryan Pulock played in three cities last year - Brooklyn, Bridgeport, and Columbus - managing 23 GP at the NHL level and scoring a goal and four assists. He comes to the team on a 3 year, $2.3M two-way contract. Tyler Bertuzzi, son of notorious former player Todd, comes to Vegas after spending last season appearing at all three stops in the Red Wings organization - ECHL Toledo, AHL Grand Rapids, and 3 games with Detroit themselves. Bertuzzi also signed a two way deal that would max out at 2 years and $1.5M. Lastly, the team picked up some players overlooked in this year’s draft. Center Cameron Hebig scored 41 goals and 88 points for Saskatoon in the WHL last year, and signed a 3 year ELC with an AAV of $575K. Another center, 20 year old Adam Ruzicka, signed an ELC worth an annual $925K after putting up a 34-48-82 line with Sarnia in the OHL. Lastly, LW Martins Dzierkals signed his ELC with a value of $566K per year after scoring 32 goals, dishing out 39 assists, and racking up 135 PIMs with Rouyn-Noranda of the QMJHL. Of the three, Ruzicka grades out as the strongest prospect - the 6’5” Slovakian is already seen as an offensive force, and many think he can become a very good player if he shores up his game on the defensive end. Trades have been few and far between this offseason, with the most notable happening on July 1st - the Islanders traded Joseph Blandisi (acquired in the Josh Ho-Sang trade last year) to the Winnipeg Jets in exchange for goalie Michael Hutchinson. In Vegas, the only trade they have made involved sending RW Austin Watson (48 GP, 0-7-7, 74 PIMs in 2017-18) to Boston for 20 year old D prospect Kale Clague (70 GP, 3-10-13 with LA/Boston in 2017-18). Clague profiles as an offensively-minded blue liner, and will spend some time in the AHL honing his craft in the upcoming season. As we push through the summer towards the beginning of training camp and preseason in September, Vegas looks confident in their lineup as it stands - no major shake-ups or additions in the offseason. The team seems content in playing the long game - collecting prospects and building up a strong core of players from the inside out. We’ll check back closer to the new season with a roster preview and predictions for the league!