The Vegas Golden Knights paid Carl Lindbom $900,000 AAV for three more seasons, making him the go-to goalie for the future. Expect him to get some backup reps in the future and prepare for the Golden Knights' crease. That's the good news for Golden Knights fans everywhere.
The bad news? That puts the burners on Adin Hill to be traded.
Okay, so maybe that isn't as bad of a news tidbit as initially thought. But it's bad news for Adin Hill Stans and the Stanley Cup hero himself. Obviously, the stats tell the story of why he's expendable.
This past season, Hill posted a GAA of 3.04 and a save percentage of .871. He also dealt with a couple of lower-body injuries that kept him off the ice, limiting him to 27 games. Combine that with Carter Hart playing well up to the Stanley Cup Final and it leaves Hill in a predicament.
That's not even mentioning his $6.25 million AAV cap hit. The Golden Knights must work out the logistics of a trade with Hill's 10-team no-trade list. Suddenly, things look dicier than usual. Still, that doesn't mean that the Golden Knights won't make the move, especially with Lindbom's news hitting the waves. In fact, it adds more pressure to the Stanley Cup hero being moved.
Why Adin Hill should be sweating bullets after the latest Carl Lindbom news
I mean, everything is in Lindbom's favor when it comes to the backup goaltending position. He's younger, has some NHL exposure, and have fresher legs. Adin Hill's had problems with his legs during his Golden Knights tenure, which has left him on the shelf.
But everyone knows that McCrimmon loves to save money. It doesn't matter if it's salary retention on a traded player or a sweetheart deal for a player like Brett Howden. The general manager loves to keep the salary cap reasonable with the team.
That means paying a $6.25 million AAV goaltender isn't happening when you've been preparing a $900,000 AAV netminder for the NHL. Lindbom needs more NHL exposure to get used to the game's speed. What better way to do that than to offload Hill's deal?
Heck, that conversation could also be had with Akira Schmid since he's a restricted free agent with arbitration rights. But his case isn't as severe as Hill's since he showed that he was a viable netminder last season.
Still, the focus is on Hill and a crowded goaltender room. McCrimmon loves valuable players, whether that's in the net or on the wing. That means the Stanley Cup hero has more pressure to be offloaded this offseason, leaving the door open for Lindbom to possibly take the backup spot.
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