What are the 5 best decisions the Knights have ever made?
The beauty and agony of hockey is how one play, one bounce of a round rubber disc, can change everything.
The Golden Knights will never know if things would have turned out differently if Adin Hill didn’t make his spectacular stick save in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final. Or if Dallas converted on a prime scoring chance just before center Chandler Stephenson’s overtime winner in Game 2 of the Western Conference Final.
It’s those little moments that can ultimately add up to something momentous.
The same holds true for roster construction. Knights president of hockey operations George McPhee and president of hockey operations made countless decisions over the past six years that turned a club that started with nothing into NHL champions.
Here’s a top five. Some honorable mentions will be listed as well:
5. Bringing in “Butch”
The Knights first two coaches, Gerard Gallant and Pete DeBoer, set an incredibly high bar after both making All-Star Game appearances with the team.
Bruce Cassidy somehow cleared it and then some. The 58-year-old wasn’t dealt an easy hand his first year on the job. The Knights started a franchise-record five goaltenders and were without captain Mark Stone for 39 games. They still won the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference and the Stanley Cup thanks to the foundation their new coach built.
Cassidy’s defensive structure helped every goaltender play the game on easy mode, and he empowered players up and down the lineup to carve out a role on the team. His impact was felt throughout the playoffs when depth forwards like Brett Howden and Michael Amadio found spots in the lineup and contributed huge goals.
4. Betting big on No. 27
The Knights in their history have dealt with two training camp holdouts.
Last season defenseman Nic Hague was away until the start of the regular season while his three-year, $6.88 million contract was worked out. But the first one, before the start of the Knights’ second year, had massive implications for the franchise.
Defenseman Shea Theodore sat out the beginning of camp before signing a seven-year, $36.4 million deal in the middle of the preseason. It was a lot of money for a 23-year-old who still had a lot to prove in the NHL. It also became one of the league’s best contracts.
Theodore, since the deal kicked in, has scored the 14th-most points among defensemen in the NHL. Yet this season, his $5.2 million cap hit is tied for 56th among blue liners.
Similar honorable mentions: Jonathan Marchessault’s six-year, $30 million deal in 2018; William Carrier’s four-year, $5.6 million contract in 2020; Brayden McNabb’s three-year, $8.55 million deal in 2022.
3. Capturing the captain
One of the Knights’ first blockbuster moves still remains one of their best.
They acquired Mark Stone from the Ottawa Senators right before the trade deadline for forward Oscar Lindberg, defense prospect Erik Brannstrom and a second-round pick Feb. 25, 2019. Stone since has scored 203 points in 218 games, become the first player in franchise history to wear a “C” and led the Knights to their first championship. All while being one of the NHL’s best defensive forwards as well.
It’s a move that provided endless dividends for the Knights while leaving little for Ottawa. Lindberg never appeared in the NHL again after the 2018-19 season. Brannstrom, now 23, is a third-pair defenseman. The player the Senators drafted with the pick they got, 23-year-old forward Egor Sokolov, has two points in 13 games.
Similar honorable mentions: Signing Alex Pietrangelo to a seven-year, $61.6 million contract, acquiring Jack Eichel from Buffalo.
2. Marchessault, Smith expansion-draft double whammy
The Knights grabbed their all-time leader in goals, assists and points, as well as the 2023 Conn Smythe Trophy winner, for free from the Florida Panthers because they left right wing Jonathan Marchessault exposed. Then, for good measure, they tossed in left wing Reilly Smith — who ranks second behind Marchessault in goals — for only a fourth-round pick.
The deal gave the Knights two top-six fixtures the first six seasons of their existence for almost no cost. And it came back to haunt the Panthers when Marchessault and Smith defeated them in the Stanley Cup Final.
Similar honorable mentions: The Karlsson, Fleury and Tuch/Haula expansion-draft additions
1. The Stephenson steal
There are a few reasons the Chandler Stephenson trade has an argument to be the best the Knights have ever made.
For one, they didn’t have the leverage of an expansion draft while executing it. Two, they gave up only a fifth-round pick this time instead of a fourth like the Smith deal. And three, they signed Stephenson to a four-year, $11 million extension that has aged just as well — perhaps even better — as Theodore’s.
Stephenson was a bottom-six grinder on the Washington Capitals in danger of losing his roster spot. The Knights swooped in Dec. 2, 2019, gave him a chance in the top six and the rest is history. Stephenson has scored 186 points in 252 games with the team and was named to the 2023 All-Star Game.
Similar honorable mentions: Getting Adin Hill from the San Jose Sharks for a fourth-round pick
Contact Ben Gotz at bgotz@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BenSGotz on Twitter.