VGK: Unrestricted free agents: To sign or not to sign?
It is back down to business for the Vegas Golden Knights who have a very busy offseason ahead of them.
Contract negotiations, salary cap issues, the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, free agency – there is lots going on for General Manager George McPhee and the Vegas Golden Knights.
We at Vegas Hockey Knight are going to be casting an eye over all the important decisions that are looming for the Knights, starting by assessing what to do with the franchise’s four pending unrestricted free agents…
Pierre-Edouard Bellemare – Center
This is perhaps the most difficult of the decisions facing George McPhee when it comes to deciding whether or not to hand Bellemare a new deal.
Not only is the 34-year-old a tremendous locker room leader, but he still provides plenty of value on the ice too.
Excellent on the penalty kill and able to eat monster minutes for a fourth-line center – he logged an average of 12:26 minutes of ice time in 2018-19 – Bellemare has been an important figure for the Knights over the last two years.
He dished out 71 hits and blocked 51 shots in 18-19 and also had an impressive faceoff win percentage of 54.7.
Linemates Ryan Reaves and William Carrier have been very vocal and generous in their praise of Bellemare, and you would imagine that both McPhee and head coach Gerard Gallant would be loathe to break that effective fourth line up.
Currently owning a cap hit of $1,450,000 and reported to want longer than a two-year deal, Bellemare wouldn’t cost the earth although that won’t help a franchise who are pushing right up against the salary cap with a projected cap hit of just under $82,375,000 and the NHL salary cap projected to rise to $83 million, thus not leaving Vegas with a lot left to play with.
One option would be to trade bottom-six forward Cody Eakin in order to free up some much-needed cap space.
Eakin carries a cap hit of $3,850,000 and would likely attract plenty of suitors due to his body of work with Vegas.
The Golden Knights have a glut of forwards on the roster and also have plenty of young studs in the system that would be able to slot in on the third line, including highly rated prospect Cody Glass.
Trading Eakin would give Vegas the wriggle room to tie Bellemare down to a new deal and therefore keeping that dominant fourth line intact.
Verdict: New Deal.
Deryk Engelland – Defenseman
If we were just taking the playing side into consideration then it would be fair to suggest that signing Engelland to a new deal would not be the most viable option.
It isn’t that easy, however.
The 37-year-old has a special connection with the Golden Knights faithful and he has been the face of this franchise since the beginning.
A long-time Vegas resident, Engelland led from the front in the wake of the tragic shooting that took place in the city in October 2018.
He also runs the Engelland’s Vegas Born Heroes Foundation and he’s a terrific role model for both the fans and for the young players in the Knight’s farm system.
As a result, Engelland will go down as a pivotal figure in this franchise’s history and rightly so, but now might be the right time to bid a painful goodbye.
In the twilight of his career and a weak link on a blueline that could do with a makeover, Engelland endured a tough year with his lack of speed, limited puck-handling skills and his limitations often had a negative impact on his linemates too.
Although a firm fan favourite and a great ambassador for the Vegas Golden Knights, McPhee has a business to run and with not much room left to play with when it comes to the salary cap, tough decisions will have to be made and Engelland’s future will be the hardest to work out.
Vegas have some promising young blueliners in their farm system, including hulking 6′ 6″ defenseman Nic Hague, so it unfortunately makes sense to part company with Engelland this summer.
Verdict: No Deal.
Ryan Carpenter – Forward
A favourite of head coach Gerard Gallant and a player who has come up clutch for the Knights on more than one occasion, Carpenter is a versatile bottom-six forward that can be used in a variety of situations.
He can also contribute offensively as proven in 2018-19 when he registered a career-high 18 points (five goals, 13 assists) in 68 games.
The 28-year-old also excelled in the faceoff circle for the Knights in 18-19, winning 52.61 percent of his draws.
However, with a slew of forwards on the roster and a collection of highly-touted prospects waiting in the wings, shedding Carpenter’s $650,000 hit and allowing him an opportunity with another NHL team might be the smart move.
Verdict: No Deal.
Brandon Pirri – Forward
Pirri hit a hot streak in December having tallied six goals and three assists for nine points in just seven games.
He couldn’t stick it in the big league however and found himself floating between the Knights and their AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves.
Pirri, who finished 2018-19 with 18 points (12 goals, six assists) in 31 games, was a popular figure with the fans in Vegas but, at 28-years-old, he hasn’t been a consistent force in the NHL and he’s been a streaky points scorer at best.
He’s also a liability in the defensive zone and, as already mentioned, there’s a raft of forward players that will be competing for roster spots during training camp.
Vegas have nine selections in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, including a first, second and three third round picks, so that level of competition will only increase too.
You have to be ruthless when dealing with a salary cap and there doesn’t appear to be much of a future for Pirri in Vegas.
Verdict: No Deal.
We’ll also be evaluating the futures of the team’s five impending Restricted Free Agents, including star center William Karlsson, early this week.
Time to turn the page and look ahead. dark. Next