This is one of the biggest weeks in the offseason as the Vegas Golden Knights prepare for the 2019 NHL Entry Draft on Friday.
We begin our coverage of this year’s Draft by breaking down what the Vegas Golden Knights could do across the weekend in Vancouver.
The 2019 NHL Entry Draft gets underway on Friday, 21 with the first round before rounds two through seven take place on Saturday, 22.
It will be a monumental weekend for the Golden Knights who will arrive in Vancouver with a treasure chest of picks, including the No.17 overall selection.
Throughout this week we will be taking a deeper dive into what the Draft might entail for Vegas, including who they could take with the 17th pick and what needs they should address with their glut of other selections.
But, for now, let’s start by taking a general look at what’s what for the Knights this weekend as they prepare to significantly bolster their pipeline and replenish their farm system.
Firstly, all eyes will be on who the front office elect to take with the No.17 pick with a high-end forward or a netminder capable of being the long-term heir to the throne to Marc-Andre Fleury perhaps the biggest needs.
Again, we will focus on who Vegas could take with that first round selection later this week in what is a very deep and talent-laden Draft, particularly when it comes to offensive-minded studs.
They also have a slew of picks to play with on Saturday including one second-round selection, three picks each in the third and fifth rounds and one in the fourth.
We’ve laid out exactly what picks the Golden Knights have in this year’s draft:
- No.17 (Round 1)
- No. 48 (Round 2)
- No. 79 (Round 3)
- No. 82 from WPG (Round 3)
- No. 86 from NSH (Round 3)
- No. 110 (Round 4)
- No. 135 from MIN (Round 5)
- No. 139 from MTL (Round 5)
- No. 141 (Round 5)
Having a plethora of picks spread throughout the draft like that gives General Manager Kelly McCrimmon and President of Hockey Operations George McPhee the unique opportunity to really strengthen the infrastructure of this franchise from the ground up.
Not only could they return to Vegas with a high-end talent, but they also have the chance to address a number of needs and fill the farm system with fresh young blood, putting a third-year NHL expansion team in an unprecedented spot.
It goes without saying that, in terms of talent on the depth chart, the cupboard is pretty bare when it comes to stud forwards with Cody Glass the biggest prospect in the organization at the moment.
Vegas could look to address that particular need with the No.17 pick given the vast amount of attacking talent available in the upper echelons of the draft, or they could look at Spencer Knight, who is touted as the top-ranked goaltender in this year’s draft. It’s a pretty cool name, too.
Maybe one area that doesn’t need as much attention is the blueline when you consider that the Knights already have a wealth of stud defensemen ready to make the leap to the NHL, including the likes of Nic Hague and Zach Whitecloud.
However, as the old saying goes you can never have too much of a good thing and, after giving up stud blueliner Erik Brannstrom as part of the Mark Stone trade on Feb, 25, there is the opportunity to compensate for that loss by adding another blueliner to the mix, although it isn’t a strong draft this year for defensemen.
That is the luxury of having an armoury of draft picks though; the front office will have a multitude of different options to consider this weekend as they attempt to flood their farm system with a glut of prospects who they hope will one day be capable of being stars in the NHL.
Then, of course, there is also the possibility that Vegas could look to trade up in the first round if they have their eyes on a particular elite prospect.
They have the ammunition to do so in terms of picks and they could also look to trade either Colin Miller or Cody Eakin or even both in order to move up.
Both Miller and Eakin are thought to be prime candidates to be shopped in trade talks this offseason as Vegas looks to create some much-needed cap space, with Miller in particular being a big enough prize to maybe move the Knights a few spots up in the first round if that’s the direction they want to head in.
One thing is for certain, the 2019 NHL Draft is a monumental one for the Vegas Golden Knights who now have the chance to significantly bolster and beef up their farm system, setting this franchise up for sustained success in the future.
Tomorrow we will continue our 2019 NHL Draft coverage by looking at a handful of players the Vegas Golden Knights could take with the No.17 pick.