The Vegas Golden Knights will be making some trades in the very near future.
Well, things are certainly starting to pick up for the Vegas Golden Knights. General Manager George McPhee has said before there will be lots of deals to make before the expansion draft. Could one already be slipping through the cracks?
According to Frank Seravalli of TSN Sports, the Vegas Golden Knights are just about ready to pull the trigger on some deals. McPhee is no stranger to pulling off deals going back to his time when he was the General Manager for the Washington Capitals. Seravalli goes on to say that the first deal could involve the expansion franchise and the highly skilled Chicago Blackhawks.
The Blackhawks are currently trying to work through their rough cap situation, and they could use the Golden Knights to their advantage. The move would involve Chicago allowing Vegas to take defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk in the expansion draft. But that’s not all, Chicago would also trade Marcus Kruger to Vegas potentially for a draft pick as well.
McPhee should be jumping all over this one. He should use every bit of Chicago’s cap problem against them. The ability to acquire players like these who have gone and won it all before is huge, especially for an expansion club.
For McPhee, this is a deal he really can’t lose. Let’s not forget McPhee could also swap those potential players for draft picks for his own. Anything’s possible when it comes the expansion draft.
#Hawks would allow VGK to take D Trevor van Riemsdyk in draft, on consideration that @GoldenKnights also take Marcus Kruger in trade. #TSN
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) May 31, 2017
One of the players that the sides are currently speaking about is van Riemsdyk. He can play either side on defense and has a decent shot from the blue line. What makes a player like van Riemsdyk an attractive option is his low cap hit at $825,000. He finished the 2016-17 campaign with five goals, 11 assists, and 16 points.
Kruger is the other player that the two clubs are discussing. The 27-year-old is one of league’s best bottom six centers. Kruger throws his body around, kills penalties magnificently and is exquisite in the defensive zone. He also has a knack for scoring clutch goals in critical situations. Kruger wrapped up the year by recording five goals, 12 assists, and 17 points.
Next: Vegas Golden Knights: Five Potential Goaltender Options at the Expansion Draft
If the report Seravalli is throwing out there is true, then this great news for the Golden Knights. It makes sense for both sides quite frankly. But it makes you think; the Blackhawks aren’t the only team that’s in cap trouble so the Vegas Golden Knights can reap some awesome rewards at the upcoming expansion draft. It’s all up to McPhee and how he approaches the trade market. Let’s hope for some deals to become official in the next few days.