Vegas Golden Knights Mock Expansion Draft Roundtable
Vegas Golden Knights Roster – Suraj Sukumar
| Forwards | |||||||
| Name | Pos | Age | 17/18 | 18/19 | 19/20 | 20/21 | 21/22 |
| Marian Gaborik | RW | 34 | $4.87M | $4.87M | $4.87M | $4.87M | UFA |
| Alex Killorn | C/LW | 27 | $4.45M | $4.45M | $4.45M | $4.45M | $4.45M |
| Jakob Silfverberg | RW/LW | 26 | $3.75M | $3.75M | UFA | ||
| Mathieu Perreault | C/LW | 28 | $4.12M | $4.12M | $4.12M | $4.12M | UFA |
| Lee Stempniak | RW | 33 | $2.5M | UFA | |||
| Jimmy Hayes | RW | 27 | $2.3M | UFA | |||
| Lance Bouma | C/LW/RW | 26 | $2.2M | UFA | |||
| Mark Letestu | C/RW | 31 | $1.8M | UFA | |||
| Michael Grabner | RW | 29 | $1.6M | UFA | |||
| Dmitrij Jaskin | RW/LW | 23 | $1.0M | RFA | |||
| Erik Haula | C/LW | 25 | RFA | ||||
| Phillip Danault | C | 23 | $913K | RFA | |||
| Jean-Gabriel Pageau | C | 23 | RFA | ||||
| William Carrier | LW | 21 | $689K | RFA | |||
| Andreas Athanasiou | C | 22 | RFA | ||||
| Defense | |||||||
| Name | LH/RH | Age | 17/18 | 18/19 | 19/20 | 20/21 | 21/22 |
| Matt Niskanen | RHD | 30 | $5.75M | $5.75M | $5.75M | $5.75M | UFA |
| Francois Beauchemin | LHD | 36 | $4.5M | UFA | |||
| Jason Demers | RHD | 28 | $4.5M | $4.5M | $4.5M | $4.5M | UFA |
| Mattias Ekholm | LHD | 26 | $3.75M | $3.75M | $3.75M | $3.75M | $3.75M |
| Luca Sbisa | LHD | 26 | $3.6M | UFA | |||
| Brenden Dillon | LHD | 26 | $3.27M | $3.27M | $3.27M | UFA | |
| Kevin Connauton | LHD | 26 | $1M | UFA | |||
| Ryan Pulock | RHD | 22 | $863K | RFA | |||
| Connor Carrick | RHD | 22 | $750K | RFA | |||
| Stephen Johns | RHD | 24 | $725K | RFA | |||
| Scott Harrington | LHD | 23 | RFA | ||||
| Goalies | |||||||
| Name | Age | 17/18 | 18/19 | 19/20 | 20/21 | 21/22 | |
| Marc-Andre Fleury | 32 | $5.75M | $5.75M | UFA | |||
| Anthony Stolarz | 22 | RFA | |||||
| Scott Darling | 27 | UFA | |||||
| Scott Wedgewood | 24 | RFA |
Projected Cap Hit: $64,710,000
Projected Cap Space: $8,290,000
Players Under Contract: 23/30
The primary goal here was to build from the back-end. Most teams will be protecting their highly-offensive forwards, which limits the amount of high-end skill the Vegas Golden Knights can pick up.
Marc-Andre Fleury was the safe bet, since the Pittsburgh Penguins look ready to move forward with Matt Murray. This leaves Fleury in a tough position, but starting for the Golden Knights gives him a second chance.
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Scott Darling is a well-bred goaltender in the NHL. He has Stanley Cup experience and is set to become a UFA this season. If the Golden Knights can lock him down for a good price, they would secure a very capable backup.
If Darling does not pan out, Anthony Stolarz and Scott Wedgewood are two young goaltenders with plenty of potential. Wedgewood has been stuck behind several great goalies in New Jersey, but could squeeze into a backup role elsewhere in the NHL. Stolarz is also in a crowded depth chart, and the Philadelphia Flyers will likely protect Steve Mason.
On defense, Matt Niskanen, Jason Demers, Brenden Dillon and Mattias Ekholm make up the corp group of blue liners. Francois Beauchemin is a great veteran who is only signed for one more year. His services will be much appreciated during the first year of hockey in Las Vegas. Luca Sbisa and Kevin Connauton round out the depth guys, while Ryan Pulock, Connor Carrick, Stephen Johns, and Scott Harrington make up the defensive prospects.
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At forward, depth is the name of the game. With little top-line skill available, the best option available is likely Marian Gaborik. When healthy, Gaborik is one of the best offensive producers in the league, and is signed to a long-term deal under the five million mark. Jakob Silfverberg, Alex Killorn, Lee Stempniak and Jimmy Hayes all have top-six potential, while Michael Grabner, Mathieu Perreault and Mark Letestu are some of the best depth players in the NHL.
To improve the high-end offensive potential of this team, several young, unproven prospects with higher offensive ceilings were selected. this group is led by Andreas Athanasiou and William Carrier, followed by some up and coming players like Erik Haula, Dmitrij Jaskin and Jean-Gabriel Pageau.