Vegas Golden Knights: Top 3 defensemen they should trade for

According to The Athletic, the Vegas Golden Knights are hoping to trade for a defenseman. Here are three defensemen they should take a look at.’

The Vegas Golden Knights are in a dogfight in the Pacific Division. Every other division has at least one team with at least 60 points. The Pacific Division has none. Entering Jan. 11, the Vegas Golden Knights are in first place with 54 points. However, the Arizona Coyotes also have 54 points. And right behind them are the Edmonton Oilers (53 points), Calgary Flames (53 points), and Vancouver Canucks (50 points).

So the Golden Knights don’t have too much breathing room. It should come as no surprise that the team is looking to fix their defensive issues, according to Jesse Granger of The Athletic (subscription required).

Their blueline has been inconsistent all season long. Nate Schmidt has merely been good instead of great, which has thrown the Knights’ blueline out of whack. Even the emergence of Shea Theodore hasn’t been able to save them. The Golden Knights desperately need some help defensively, and that’s going to have to happen from outside the organization.

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Even if Schmidt improves (and I’m not a betting man but if I were, I’d bet on him bouncing back), adding a defenseman would help make things easier for everybody. The difference between winning the Pacific Division and missing the playoffs could be minuscule. No team has pulled away yet, which means it’s likely going to be a contested race until the end.

That said, it’s going to be tough for the Golden Knights to trade for a defenseman because they don’t have much cap space. Granger notes in his article that they have merely $109,629 of cap space right now. Though the Knights will have a little bit more by the trade deadline in February, it won’t be consequentially more. This means Vegas will have to move out salary to bring in just about anyone.

So which defensemen should the Knights be looking at? Who should they be hoping to get at the trade deadline? Which defensemen make the most logical sense for them? Let’s take a look at three defensemen they should trade for.

The San Jose Sharks are likely out of the playoff conversation. Not only are they eight points out of a playoff spot and nine points out of a top-three spot in the Pacific Division, but team captain Logan Couture will be out for a bit. That might be the straw that broke the camel’s (shark’s?) back.

One of the biggest problems the Golden Knights have with their blueline is their inability to prevent goals. They allow a lot of high-danger chances (the 18th-most per hour at 5v5, to be precise). This leads to a lot of goals, as the Golden Knights have also allowed the 10th most 5v5 goals against per hour.

That’s why Brendon Dillon of the Sharks would be a perfect person for the Knights to target. As Granger notes in his article, he’d bring a certain snarl and grittiness to the Knights blueline that they’ve been lacking this season. Dillon has been one of the Sharks’ most consistent defensemen this season. Here’s where he ranks among San Jose defensemen (min. 300 5v5 minutes).

• Goals Against per hour: 1st (2.77)
• High Danger Chances Against per hour: 3rd (11.06)
• Expected Goals Against per hour: 1st (2.15)

Admittedly, Dillon doesn’t have very attractive boxcar stats. He only has one goal and 10 assists for 11 points. However, Dillon could be someone who helps tilt the ice back in the Knights’ favor. He’s capable of playing top-four minutes and is strong in his own zone.

The lone issue with Dillon is his cap hit. It’s $3.27 million. The Knights would have to move someone just to get him. And that’s assuming the Sharks are willing to retain some salary.

Tony DeAngelo of the New York Rangers isn’t the best fit for the Vegas Golden Knights defensively. However, what he brings to the table on offense simply cannot be matched on the trade market. Very few defensemen can do what DeAngelo can do with the puck.

He’s a human spark plug, constantly adding offense and energy for the New York Rangers, who surprisingly have the most points from blueliners in the NHL. In 43 games this season, DeAngelo already has 11 goals and 36 points.

Our friends at Vegas Hockey Knight recently wrote the following about DeAngelo and why he would be such a good fit for the Golden Knights.

[The Golden Knights] now rank 4th in the NHL in controlled entries (36.8), 4th in goals off the rush (0.68), 4th in odd-man rushes (3.8) and 2nd in rush scoring chances (7.0).

Those numbers have since changed a tad bit, but they’re still pretty good. These numbers are courtesy of The Point Hockey.

The best thing about DeAngelo, aside from his offense, is how cheap he is. Currently, he has just a $925,000 cap hit. That’s outrageously cheap, which is a great thing for the Golden Knights, who are starving for cap space.

Now here comes the bad news. It’s going to take a lot for the Rangers to move on from DeAngelo. The Golden Knights might not have what it takes to wrestle him away from Broadway. Also, though he’s making just $925,000 this year, he’s due for a significant raise this summer.