Vegas Golden Knights: Expansion Draft Calgary Flames (5/30)

The Vegas Golden Knights are the newest NHL team. Over the next month I will take a look at why they took who they did from each NHL franchise.

The Vegas Golden Knights are the 31st NHL franchise. As an expansion team they were allowed to take one player (who was eligible to be drafted) from the other 30 NHL teams. Each team was able to protect either seven forwards, three defenceman and one goaltender or eight skaters and one goaltender. The full rules can be found here. The fifth team we are going to look at is the Calgary Flames.

Calgary Flames

The Flames had a couple of good options for Vegas to take. Despite the good options, I would say Vegas made a mediocre acquisition by drafting Deryk Engelland. Engelland is currently 35 years old and would have been and unrestricted free agent if Vegas did not take him. That means, if Vegas decided to take somebody else, they could have signed Engelland from FA. Looking at Calgary’s defensive core, they most likely would have left Engelland unsigned and thus, Vegas could have signed him from FA.

If I was Vegas, there were a few younger players that were available that could have been a bigger help to the team. Brett Kulak and Hunter Shinkaruk were available and could have become good players for Vegas. Kulak is 23 years old and still has time to grow into an NHL defenceman. His speed and defensive capabilities could have been of more use than Engelland, who at 35 could be retiring soon. Shinkaruk is a 22-year-old left winger and although he is a good AHL player, with proper training he could become a good NHL player. On top of that, joining an expansion team gives him a new scenery, which he needs.

What Other Options Did They Have?

The Knights’ decided to take Engelland from Calgary. They could have taken younger players in Kulak and Shinkaruk instead. On top of that, I would say the best choice for Vegas would have been to take Michael Stone.

Stone is a 27-year-old, right-handed defenceman. He has shown that he can handle top four minutes and that could be a huge help to Vegas. While Engelland is capable of handling the same type of minutes, he is older and thus, is not as valuable. Also, as I said before, Vegas could have signed Engelland from FA, this means that they could have had Stone and Engelland. That could have been an improvement to their defensive core, and make their right side stronger.

Overall, if I was Vegas, I would have drafted Stone over Engelland.

Overview

The Knights’ had a couple of good options from the Flames. They could have went with a prospect in either Kulak or Shinkaruk. They also could have drafted a defenceman in his prime, Stone. But, the Knights’ decided to take Engelland.

While I personally would not have made that choice, I can understand their reasoning. Engelland has a lot of NHL experience and could be a leader for their younger players. He can also play more minutes because of his experience and thus, be able to shelter the younger players.

Next: Possible Line Combinations Part 2

Engelland can be a helpful player, but I believe that Stone would have been the better option.

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