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Vegas Golden Knights: Predicting what might have happened on July 1

By Andrew Steele-Davis

Alex Pietrangelo #27 of the St. Louis Blues shoots the puck. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Alex Pietrangelo #27 of the St. Louis Blues shoots the puck. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
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Robin Lehner #90 of the Vegas Golden Knights is introduced before a game against the New Jersey Devils.
Robin Lehner #90 of the Vegas Golden Knights is introduced before a game against the New Jersey Devils. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

Scenario 2 – Robin Lehner

Looking at a flat Salary Cap for potentially the next two seasons, the Golden Knights opted not to go after a star on the first day of Free Agency.

Instead, the front office decided to focus on their current roster instead and switched their energy on trying to re-sign goalie Robin Lehner.

Acquired as a pure rental at the Trade Deadline – something the Golden Knights normally stay well away from – Lehner was meant to be the final piece in a Stanley Cup puzzle.

Going 3-0-0 in his first three starts for Vegas with a 1.67 Goals Against Average and a .940 Save Percentage prior to the NHL going on pause, Lehner showed exactly why he was a Vezina Trophy finalist in 2018-19.

A pending UFA for the fourth consecutive off-season, the 28-year-old went into Free Agency seeking both term and a lucrative payday after betting himself on countless occasions.

And, content with the makeup of their roster, the Golden Knights happily obliged by signing Lehner to a five-year contract with an AAV of $6 million.

It was a win-win deal for both parties with Lehner gaining the stability he so craved, while the Golden Knights locked down one of the best goalie tandems in the entire NHL.

Granted, committing to Lehner doesn’t leave a lot of cap space for the Vegas Golden Knights but, as the old saying goes, you can’t win championships without elite goaltending.

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