Quote:
Originally Posted by You Need a Thneed
Vegas currently has a full roster for next year, right at the cap, according to Cap Friendly.
So, they were a wildcard team that lost in the first round.
They are losing their top goal scorer and top point getter, and won't be able to replace with anything.
They are losing their fifth top point getter, and won't be able to replace with anything.
They are losing their 10th top point getter, and won't be able to replace with anything.
They are losing their 4/5 D man in terms of ice time.
They have ONE pick before the 6th round in the coming draft.
They haven't had any picks higher than 29th overall since 2019. They have had only 2 picks higher than 77th overall in the last 2 drafts. All of their drafts picks since 2020 have combined for 9 NHL points to date.
Could they continue to do what Vegas has done? Yes.
But it looks less and less likely to happen these next few years.
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Good points. I agree that the Knights are likely to see a decline over the next few years. The only advantage they have that might help them avoid this is that they are still a top destination for free agents.
As others have mentioned, I think they’ll get cap relief from Stone LTIR-retiring within the next year - my guess is he “retires” in summer 2025. If they shed his salary + someone else walks to free agency or is traded (Karlsson for example), they can have room to sign Draisaitl/McDavid in 2025/2026. If they make more moves or other guys LTIR-retire, they can keep building through free agency. Eventually, they will struggle from having no depth developing through the draft, but they can manage it for a few years with elite talent in free agency.