Just when you think that the Vegas Golden Knights are done making ball-busting trades, they seem to be in the works for another one. After all, Kelly McCrimmon never sleeps in his endless pursuit to get the best players possible. Gotta assemble the Monstars in Las Vegas, you know?
Elliotte Friedman thinks that the Golden Knights are looking at other options, particularly in net. There's speculation about whether the team might add another netminder to the mix.
"I'm beginning to wonder if Vegas looks at a goalie."Friedman on FAN Hockey Show
That's right, ladies and gentlemen. Kelly McCrimmon might not be done adding before Friday's trade deadline. He might look at upgrading the goaltender position, adding yet another name to the growing list.
It stands with good reason, too. The Golden Knights have been one of the NHL's worst teams in net this season. Take a look at the goal differential above expected from March 1 as a perfect example.
Team Goal Differential Above Expected - March 1 pic.twitter.com/t9xm4PwPe9
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) March 1, 2026
The goaltenders "leading" the charge have been Adin Hill and Carter Hart, with Akira Schmid standing out as the de facto No. 1 statistically. So, what's one more body going to do for the room, eh? I mean, yeah, the market has slim pickings, aside from Jordan Binnington. But McCrimmon has worked crazier trades during his Golden Knights tenure.
Alas, a new netminder won't completely solve Vegas's problems of allowing too many goals. There's a deeper problem at hand for the Golden Knights. Believe it or not, it's one they've created, leading up to this point.
The Vegas Golden Knights have a back-end problem
One of the main problems that Vegas currently has is a lack of pure defensemen. I'm talking about having guys akin to Brayden McNabb (who's 35 years old, mind you) around, taking away space for the netminder. While goalies like Adin Hill are part of the problem, it's also losing players like Alec Martinez, Alex Pietrangelo, and Nicolas Hague that make life much worse.
Connor Murphy would've been a nice pickup for Vegas, considering that he plays this style. However, he was scooped up by the Edmonton Oilers, bolstering their back-end. In turn, it gives Edmonton some help for the goaltender.
If you add plenty of defensive-minded defensemen in an age where offense is all the rage, it makes life easier for goalies like Hill and Schmid. They get more favorable looks and can make the proper movements for defending the net.
That might be something that McCrimmon addresses during the offseason. It's relatively easy to find low-cost options that can fit the mold for Cassidy's system. However, the urgency to address the back-end is much stronger for Vegas than simply adding another goaltender.
Will that be the case? Who knows? Prominent figures like Friedman and Greg Wyshynski think that it would benefit the Golden Knights. However, the problem is much more complex than people realize. That's why a name like Binnington might not work out the way that fans would hope to see.