Las Vegas Knights Should Be Built With Good Character

Las Vegas Knights Must Focus on Good Character More Than Any Other Team

NHL’s 31st franchise now has a rumored name (Las Vegas Knights) and a General Manager (George McPhee). There’s still work to do constructing a front office, but the focus now turns to next June’s Expansion Draft.

Thanks to GeneralFanger’s Expansion Tool, it’s never been easier to get a decent idea of who could land in Las Vegas.

Unfortunately, it’s difficult to project for two main reasons. First, we expect to see continued player movement over the next 10 or 11 months. Second, we don’t know the draft philosophy that will be used.

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For example, expansion rules dictate the club must select at least 20 players under contract for 2017-18 (includes RFAs). In a heavy draft and develop league with 50 roster spots to fill, why wouldn’t Vegas make each target a player under contract so that only 20 spots are left to be filled?

Logic might suggest a good mix of NHL ready skill to put a competitive team on the ice, with a mix of prospects to be best.

Regardless of which direction GM George McPhee and company choose in relation to building their new team, each player must share one common trait; good character.

They don’t call it Sin City for no reason. Any place that carries a saying “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas” tells you everything you need to know. It’s the gambling capital of North America, and birthplace of all major sports odds.

Just a year ago, Jarret Stoll found himself in legal trouble down in Las Vegas due to an apparent cocaine possession charge – it was eventually reduced to a misdemeanor.

This is the one thing being overlooked about a team in Vegas. Sin City is considered to be one of the early major super highway stops for the Mexican Drug Cartel.

The following video is from National Geographic Channel “Drugs Inc.”, titled “High Stakes Vegas”. Please Note: Viewer Discretion is Advised, Drugs Inc is a graphic show not recommended for a younger audience!

DRUGS INC: HIGH STAKES VEGAS (National Geographic Channel, 2012) from ANDREW PARKIN on Vimeo.

All that extra temptation in one of the world’s most exciting cities means the Las Vegas Knights will need to put in a little extra work opposed to 30 other teams to ensure they add personalities that can handle the environment.

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That means the Knights might think about avoiding players with addictive personalities or a history of violence. A bit of extra due diligence with background checks to ensure players are coming from a good family with a decent head on their shoulders could go a long way.

GM George McPhee should feel comfortable knowing his players are at home in the suburbs on their time off, and not down on the Las Vegas Strip being bombarded by TMZ.

Closing on a different but not unrelated note. Fans/experts are continually linking Buffalo Sabres F Evander Kane as a candidate for Las Vegas. If the rumors are true that GM Tim Murray is ready to move on, it’s likely he is available in expansion draft.

Let’s make something very clear though, even if that’s the case, there is almost zero chance George McPhee selects Kane.

Next: Mock Expansion Draft: Post-Draft/Free Agency

He was considered a “head case” in Winnipeg, to a point where teammates threw his track suit in the shower. Buffalo rolled the dice in hopes that he would mature and unfortunately it didn’t work. Tim Murray’s only hope at this point is that another team out there believes they can mold a more mature Evander Kane.

If you were the Las Vegas GM, are there any other players you would avoid in expansion draft for similar reasons? How important of a factor do you think character should be for Vegas when evaluating players?