Kelly McCrimmon has options for which players he wants to bring on-board
This past summer, the Golden Knights were in a perpetual salary cap hell. They also had a mass exodus of forwards leave the team, ranging from Jonathan Marchessault to Chandler Stephenson. Many fans thought they were cooked without their main centers and wingers, leaving the fanbase wondering who'd replace the scoring.
Enter Pavel Dorofeyev (22 goals). The Russian winger leads the Golden Knights in goals this season, breaking through for an incredible 2024-25 campaign. He's also a restricted free agent in 2026, coming with arbitration rights. The added salary cap cushion gives McCrimmon the power to give his star winger more money, keeping him in Las Vegas for years.
Of course, this also applies to Nicolas Hague, who's a restricted free agent in 2025 and has arbitration rights. Keeping both players on board for the long run is possible with an increased salary cap, giving the team the space needed to keep both key players moving forward.
That also applies to other pending free agents in the 2025 offseason, including Victor Olofsson and Brandon Saad. What happens if the newly signed Saad makes a splash on the Golden Knights and helps them get another Stanley Cup? What if Olofsson adds another layer to the team's power play? McCrimmon can evaluate these players further, exploring the possibilities of giving one (maybe two) of the pending free agents in 2025 a contract extension.