The Vegas Golden Knights organization is at currently at a stand still. With all the injuries they’ve faced, players placed on the COVID list, and how tight-locked they are with their current financial situation, there’s not much they can do. In fact, things are only going to get tighter from here. But, with some maneuvering, there’s a name out there that could present a great balance for the Knights- Evander Kane.
The Vegas Golden Knights are in a tough spot with everything going on. Not really knowing what the future holds for this team, they are going to be looking to win now. With saying that, they could look to replace a player by adding a another player at a much cheaper cost.
Yesterday prior to the game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Vegas Golden Knights got their first real look at Jack Eichel. Now, I know that’s not true from a literal standpoint because they have played against him. And to that I saw- You’re right. However, they’ve not seen him since getting his artificial disc surgery, and so that was a huge step for both him and the organization.
That seems like something we should be excited about- and we are. We just aren’t huge fans of what’s to come. With Eichel taking a huge step in the right direction by attending practice, it does present some further challenges. For example, what line are you going to have him on? Who are you going to play him with? And most importantly, how are you going to get salary cap compliant?
With Eichel going to be making $10,000,000 once he gets activated off of LTIR, that is going to put the Vegas Golden Knights into quite the predicament. In order for the Knights to activate him, they are going to have to trade away multiple players. In saying that, there is a lot of speculation upon who they will trade. Now, although I have my own personal favorite choice, there’s no certainty around anything. So for now, let’s go with the most likely choice.
How Will the Vegas Golden Knights Get Cap Compliant?
More than likely, when Eichel returns to the lineup, they will be looking to move one of their forwards. No reason to move a defenseman when you’re replacing a forward. So, its possible that they could look to move a center or two, but I’d say It’s more likely they move a winger. However, with how badly tied up the Knights are in cap, they could look to trade a defenseman as well.
If you were to take a look at the defenseman to determine if any of them could be traded, there is one name that comes to mind- Alec Martinez.
Lately, there has been a lot of talk revolving around Evgenii Dadonov. Personally, I feel like he’ll stick around unless they move more than one player- Which is a real possibility. In this case, we are going to run that scenario. So, who will be moved?
Who Will Get Moved for the Vegas Golden Knights?
I stated earlier in this article that I was going to go with the more probable choices and I feel that is both Reilly Smith, Evgenii Dadonov, and Alec Martinez.
Smith and Dadonov are both talented wingers and it hurts to see them go, but they are in a stacked position for the Vegas Golden Knights. It’s hard to think that they’d keep both of them when they aren’t quite performing to their pay. Not to mention, it helps give the young guys a real chance to grow into NHL caliber players.
Seeing the misfit line breakup is hard to process, but their time in Vegas is going to come to an end rather it’s Smith or Marchessault. The Vegas Golden Knights simply just don’t have the money to keep both of them on the roster. So, between the two, I’m trading away Reilly Smith for sure.
As for my reasoning behind trading Alec Martinez, we’ll that’s coming up on this next part.
Now, that we have the names I will be trading away in this article- let me break down the financial situation of the Vegas Golden Knights.
The Vegas Golden Knights Financial Situation
Looking at the Vegas Golden Knights cap space, it doesn’t look great. The Vegas Golden Knights currently have only $2,510,833 available. Which, obviously is without Alec Martinez and Jack Eichel’s contracts on the book. So with that being said, you’re probably curious as to what they make. We’ll let me tell you.
Jack Eichel is currently set to make $10,000,000 AAV over the next five years excluding this one. Alec Martinez is currently making $5,250,000 AAV for the next two years excluding this one. So, when they both get activated off the Vegas Golden Knights long-term injury reserve, the Knights will need to clear $12,739,167 in order to be cap compliant.
Looking at the contracts of Reilly Smith and Evgenii Dadonov, they are actually very similar. Smith is set to make $5,000,000 and same goes for Dadonov. Which, as you can probably realize, it’s only $10,000,000. So that means that even with those two names being traded away, they will still need to clear another $2,739,167. That’s where trading Alec Martinez comes into play.
Trading Alec Martinez is definitely not my preferred choice, but the truth of the matter is that he is obviously replaceable. I mean, just look at this season for example.
This season Martinez has played in a total of 11 games. Yet, the Vegas Golden Knights are still finding ways to win. The reason? It’s because the depth they have defensively. With guys like Nicolas Hague, Ben Hutton, Daniil Miromanov, Dylan Coghlan, and Zach Whitecloud stepping up, it’s allowed most people to realize that Martinez isn’t as important as people think.
Not to mention- if you trade Martinez away, you’re clearing more than enough cap for the next couple years to give yourself enough room to go make some other moves in free agency. In fact, there’s a move you can make right now to help your team.
Evander Kane vs Vegas Golden Knights. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /
The Vegas Golden Knights Should Target Evander Kane
The Vegas Golden Knights are going to have to trade multiple players to get cap compliant, but that doesn’t mean they have to get rid of the talent. Even though Reilly Smith is a great leader in the locker room and brings a great all-around talent, he hasn’t quite produced this season the way we would’ve hoped. Same goes for Evgenii Dadonov.
Evgenii Dadonov was supposed to be the a key player for the Vegas Golden Knights, but he hasn’t been playing like people expected. As a player who has been scoring 20+ goals consistently for the last couple years, they thought that’s what they were going to get from him. That is not the case.
As for Alec Martinez, he just hasn’t played much. He’s been dealing with injuries since the beginning of the season. Only playing in 11 games this season for the Vegas Golden Knights, his relevancy hasn’t been a impact or a thought for most fans this season.
So, that brings me to the reason why I’m writing this article- Evander Kane.
You may ask- why Evander Kane? or maybe your a little bit more enraged and saying you don’t want him anywhere near the Vegas Golden Knights locker room. Quite frankly, I understand it. However, just hear me out.
Why the Vegas Golden Knights Should Sign Evander Kane
If the Vegas Golden Knights trade away both Reilly Smith and Evgenii Dadonov in order to get themselves under the cap, they will be looking a lot less powerful because they’d be missing out of the depth that makes them so good. That’s where the trade for Evander Kane would come into play.
So after trading away both Reilly Smith and Dadonov their lineup would probably look something like this;
Forwards
Mark Stone-Jack Eichel-Max Pacioretty
Jonathan Marchessault-William Karlsson-Keegan Kolesar
Mattias Janmark-Chandler Stephenson-Nicolas Roy
William Carrier-Nolan Patrick-Michael Amadio
So, you can see that it’s a decent lineup because you have some decent depth at all positions, but it’s still not great. When you have to face teams as talented as the Maple Leafs, Avalanche, Oilers, Flames, and Blues, it’s hard to think that line can compete with those. I mean, don’t get me wrong, the first line is very very good, but compared to what the Knights have now, it’s not nearly as good. That’s where Evander Kane comes into play.
Now, trust me- I know the risk that they’d be taking if they signed him, but I feel it’s worth the risk. Kane is undeniably a talented player on the ice, but he needs help off the ice. With a terrible history, and blatant signs of immaturity he’s known as one of the most toxic players in the locker room. However, after hitting rock bottom, he could be ready to finally mature and make a change in his life.
So, if Kelley McCrimmon and Pete DeBoer feel like they have a tight knit locker room and that they are close enough to keep him in check, he’d be a great addition to a team already as talented as the Vegas Golden Knights are. In case you’re having a hard time picturing it, take a look.
Forwards
Mark Stone-Jack Eichel-Max Pacioretty
Jonathan Marchessault-William Karlsson-Evander Kane
Keegan Kolesar-Chandler Stephenson-Nicolas Roy
William Carrier-Nolan Patrick-Mattias Janmark
Now, after taking a look at the previous lineup I complied, I feel it’s safe to say the second lineup tops the first. With a lineup of Stone, Eichel, and Pacioretty then follow that with a lineup consisting of Marchessault, Karlsson, and Kane. Those are two lines that could be first lines for just about any team out there.
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Once again, I understand signing Kane would be a huge risk but It’s worth the risk when you have the ability to get a player as talented as him.
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