The dust is finally settling in the desert.
After a cloud-kicking array of post-expansion draft moves, the Vegas Golden Knights are close to resembling a regular NHL roster. And they're not done yet with their reconstruction -- with Nate Schmidt's recent two-year arbitration award, Vegas is carrying 10 NHL-caliber defensemen.
But with training camp just weeks away, it seems like a decent time to evaluate George McPhee's sometimes-criticized expansion efforts.
How to evaluate? I will weigh two possibilities for each team that the Golden Knights chose from: Who was each unprotected list's best non-UFA "win now" pick? And who was the best "build for the future" selection? Then, I'll pass judgment on McPhee's actual course of action.
Of course, putting together a team isn't as black or white as "win now" or "build for the future." Vegas clearly tried a mixed approach. But examining McPhee's machinations against this dichotomy should illuminate his work -- for better and for worse.
This will be a four-part series: Part One will review McPhee's selections
from Anaheim to Dallas, Part Two Detroit to New York, Part Three Ottawa to Winnipeg, and Part Four will summarize our findings.
Detroit Red Wings
Exposed List: Louis-Marc Aubry, Mitch Callahan, Colin Campbell, Martin Frk, Luke Glendening, Darren Helm, Drew Miller, Tomas Nosek, Riley Sheahan, Ben Street, Eric Tangradi, Adam Almquist, Jonathan Ericsson, Niklas Kronwall, Brian Lashoff, Dylan McIlrath, Xavier Ouellet, Ryan Sproul, Jared Coreau, Petr Mrazek, Edward Pasquale, Jake Paterson
Best "Win Now" Pick: 30-year-old Darren Helm is still an effective, versatile third-line forward, though his $3.85 million cap hit over the next four seasons is a turn-off.
Best "Build For The Future" Pick: Talented but inconsistent 25-year-old netminder Petr Mrazek, while not being worth a lot now, has the ability to quickly re-build his value.
What McPhee Did: McPhee selected 24-year-old center Tomas Nosek. Nosek enjoyed a banner postseason, leading the Calder Cup-winning Grand Rapids Griffins in scoring.
Verdict: Nosek has a safe floor, but his NHL ceiling is most likely bottom-six. McPhee might have wanted to avoid a logjam in goal, but Mrazek certainly has a higher ceiling. Grade: D.
Edmonton Oilers
Exposed List: David Desharnais, Justin Fontaine, Matt Hendricks, Roman Horak, Jujhar Khaira, Anton Lander, Iiro Pakarinen, Tyler Pitlick, Zach Pochiro, Benoit Pouliot, Henrik Samuelsson, Bogdan Yakimov,
Mark Fayne, Andrew Ference, Mark Fraser, Eric Gryba, David Musil, Jordan Oesterle, Griffin Reinhart, Kris Russell, Dillon Simpson, Laurent Brossoit, Jonas Gustavsson
Best "Win Now" Pick: 30-year-old winger Benoit Pouliot is just two seasons removed from a string of adequate middle-six campaigns.
Best "Build For The Future" Pick: Disappointing blueliner Griffin Reinhart, who went fourth in the 2012 NHL Draft, is still just 23.
What McPhee Did: McPhee took a flier on Reinhart.
Verdict: While Reinhart isn't likely to blossom into the top-pairing defender that so many envisioned five years ago, Vegas can afford to let him grow into a reliable NHL'er. There wasn't a lot to choose from here. Grade: B.
Florida Panthers
Exposed List: Graham Black, Tim Bozon, Jaromir Jagr, Jussi Jokinen, Derek MacKenzie, Jonathan Marchessault, Colton Sceviour, Michael Sgarbossa, Reilly Smith, Brody Sutter, Paul Thompson, Shawn Thornton, Thomas Vanek, Jason Demers, Jakub Kindl, Brent Regner, Reece Scarlett, MacKenzie Weegar, Reto Berra, Sam Brittain, Roberto Luongo
Best "Win Now" Pick: For a team that missed the postseason, the Panthers offered a surprising wealth of above-average NHL talent to the Golden Knights. 29-year-old rearguard Jason Demers, who suffered a tough year, has moved the puck well for a long time. 25-year-old winger Reilly Smith is a two-time 20-goal scorer and can skate in all situations. Aging goalie Roberto Luongo is still providing a quality standard of play. Of course, Demers, Smith, and Luongo all have unappetizing long-term contracts. On the other end of that spectrum is 26-year-old center-winger Jonathan Marchessault, who has a $750K cap hit and notched 30 goals last season.
Best "Build For The Future" Pick: Marchessault will be easy to flip at the Trade Deadline if he continues to score.
What McPhee Did: McPhee gambled on Smith, who has five years left at $5 million per. To tempt Vegas into taking on this contract, Florida left Marchessault unprotected. Officially, the Golden Knights selected Marcessault in the Expansion Draft, and sent a 2018 fourth-rounder to the Panthers for Smith.
Verdict: Two possible, relatively young top-six talents for a mid-round pick and cap relief is an excellent swap for McPhee. He can afford some bad contracts. Smith may not be a $5 million dollar player, but given his age, is a reasonable bounceback bet. Hopefully, his contract doesn't become a drag -- five more years is a lot. Grade: B.
Los Angeles Kings
Exposed List: Andy Andreoff, Justin Auger, Dustin Brown, Kyle Clifford, Andrew Crescenzi, Nic Dowd, Marian Gaborik, Jarome Iginla, Trevor Lewis, Michael Mersch, Jordan Nolan, Teddy Purcell, Devin Setoguchi, Nick Shore, Matt Greene, Vincent Loverde, Brayden McNabb, Cameron Schilling, Rob Scuderi, Zach Trotman, Jack Campbell, Jeff Zatkoff
Best "Win Now" Pick: 30-year-old Trevor Lewis doesn't boast much offensive upside, but he's been a trustworthy bottom-six defensive forward for two Stanley Cup winners.
Best "Build For The Future" Pick: 27-year-old center Nic Dowd, who showed well as a rookie on LA's second-unit power play last year, could be a late-blooming playmaker. 26-year-old blueliner Brayden McNabb has played well in short stints. Both might flourish with more responsibility. Lewis would probably be easy to flip for a mid-round pick at the Trade Deadline.
What McPhee Did: McPhee chose McNabb.
Verdict: Granted, this was a bevy of unexciting options, but Dowd has more upside than McNabb. Lewis is also a surer bet in terms of value. That said, McNabb will give tough, dependable bottom-pairing minutes. His skating difficulties probably prevent much more. Grade: C.
Minnesota Wild
Exposed List: Brady Brassart, Patrick Cannone, Ryan Carter, Kurtis Gabriel, Martin Hanzal, Erik Haula, Zack Mitchell, Jordan Schroeder, Eric Staal, Chris Stewart, Ryan White, Victor Bartley, Matt Dumba, Christian Folin, Guillaume Gelinas, Alexander Gudbranson, Gustav Olofsson, Nate Prosser, Marco Scandella, Mike Weber, Johan Gustafsson, Darcy Kuemper, Alex Stalock
Best "Win Now" Pick: 32-year-old center Eric Staal proved last season that he could still be a lead dog for a winner.
Best "Build For The Future" Pick: Offensively-minded 23-year-old Mathew Dumba rang up 34 points last year, while playing the third-most blueline minutes in Minnesota. Staal, due just $3.5 million per over the next two seasons, could garner a first-round pick at the Trade Deadline.
What McPhee Did: To stay away from Staal and Dumba, McPhee sent out a 2018 third-round pick to get back center Erik Haula and top prospect Alex Tuch.
Verdict: Haula is an underrated, versatile third-line forward, who might get a look for a top-six role. 2014 first-round pick Tuch impressed in his first pro campaign, ringing up 18 goals in Iowa. If Tuch becomes a legitimate scorer, this could be a win for McPhee -- but it's hard to justify passing up a 23-year-old blueliner who's already carved out top-four minutes on a 100-point team. Grade: C.
Montreal Canadiens
Exposed List: Daniel Carr, Connor Crisp, Jacob De La Rose, Bobby Farnham, Brian Flynn, Max Friberg, Charles Hudon, Dwight King, Stefan Matteau, Torrey Mitchell, Joonas Nattinen, Steve Ott, Tomas Plekanec, Alexander Radulov, Chris Terry, Brandon Davidson, Alexei Emelin, Keegan Lowe, Andrei Markov, Nikita Nesterov, Zach Redmond, Dalton Thrower, Al Montoya
Best "Win Now" Pick: 31-year-old defenseman Alexei Emelin was a first-choice penalty killer and bore top-four minutes for the Canadiens.
Best "Build For The Future" Pick: 23-year-old forward Charles Hudon has nothing to prove in the AHL after three-consecutive prolific campaigns. He has top-six potential.
What McPhee Did: McPhee selected Emelin and re-routed the vet to Nashville for a 2018 third-round pick.
Verdict: A third-rounder for Emelin is a decent return. But will Hudon end up being worth more? Grade: B.
Nashville Predators
Exposed List: Pontus Aberg, Cody Bass, Vernon Fiddler, Mike Fisher, Cody McLeod, James Neal, PA Parenteau, Adam Payerl, Mike Ribeiro, Miikka Salomaki, Colton Sissons, Craig Smith, Trevor Smith, Austin Watson, Colin Wilson, Harry Zolnierczyk, Taylor Aronson, Anthony Bitetto, Stefan Elliott, Petter Granberg, Brad Hunt, Matt Irwin, Andrew O'Brien, Adam Pardy, Jaynen Rissling, Scott Valentine, Yannick Weber, Marek Mazanec
Best "Win Now" Pick: 29-year-old winger James Neal had a rocky season, but has flashed 30-40 goal talent recently.
Best "Build For The Future" Pick: Neal, if at his best, is a difference-maker who could start a Trade Deadline bidding war. 23-year-old winger Pontus Aberg showed in the playoffs that he has 20-goal potential.
What McPhee Did: McPhee opted for the veteran Neal.
Verdict: Aberg is a promising building block. But assuming that Neal, who has just one season left in his current contract, becomes trade bait, his value ceiling might be higher. Grade: B.
New Jersey Devils
Exposed List: Beau Bennett, Michael Cammalleri, Carter Camper, Luke Gazdic, Shane Harper, Jacob Josefson, Ivan Khomutov, Stefan Noesen, Marc Savard, Devante Smith-Pelly, Petr Straka, Mattias Tedenby, Ben Thomson, David Wohlberg, Seth Helgeson, Viktor Loov, Ben Lovejoy, Andrew MacWilliam, Jon Merrill, Dalton Prout, Karl Stollery, Alexander Urbom, Keith Kinkaid, Scott Wedgewood
Best "Win Now" Pick: Somehow, Ben Lovejoy managed to be used more than any other New Jersey blueliner last year. Obviously playing over his head, the 33-year-old can still offer decent #4-6 minutes to anybody.
Best "Build For The Future" Pick: The 24-year-old Stefan Noesen showed a nose for the net after the Devils picked him up off waivers last year. The former first-round pick doesn't project as a likely top-six forward though. Lovejoy could return a mid-round draft pick at the Trade Deadline.
What McPhee Did: McPhee opted for once highly-touted blueliner Jon Merrill.
Verdict: The oft-injured Merrill has yet to put together a full NHL season. It's also telling that the 25-year-old remained buried on a weak depth chart. That said, New Jersey's unprotected list wasn't exactly stocked with saliviating talent. Grade: C.
New York Islanders
Exposed List: Josh Bailey, Steve Bernier, Eric Boulton, Jason Chimera, Casey Cizikas, Cal Clutterbuck, Stephen Gionta, Ben Holmstrom, Bracken Kearns, Nikolay Kulemin, Brock Nelson, Shane Prince, Alan Quine, Ryan Strome, Johan Sundstrom, Calvin de Haan, Matthew Finn, Jesse Graham, Thomas Hickey, Loic Leduc, Scott Mayfield, Dennis Seidenberg, Jean-Francois Berube, Christopher Gibson, Jaroslav Halak
Best "Win Now" Pick: 27-year-old center Josh Bailey set career highs in assists (43) and points (56) last year. He's not a bad 2C. 26-year-old blueliner Calvin de Haan should be a top-four mainstay for a long time.
Best "Build For The Future" Pick: 25-year-old Brock Nelson has enjoyed three straight 20-goal seasons, though he still must improve his play away from the puck.
What McPhee Did: To keep away from Bailey, de Haan, Nelson, and others, McPhee received New York's 2017 first-round pick (#15), 2019 second-round pick, blueline prospect Jake Bischoff, and the last year of Mikhail Grabovski's $5 million cap hit. Instead, the Golden Knights took goaltender J.F. Berube, who walked as a UFA.
Verdict: Essentially, for de Haan and giving short-term cap relief, McPhee got a first, a second, and a mid-range prospect. That's fantastic value. Grade: A.
New York Rangers
Exposed List: Taylor Beck, Chris Brown, Daniel Catenacci, Jesper Fast, Tanner Glass, Michael Grabner, Marek Hrivik, Nicklas Jensen, Carl Klingberg, Oscar Lindberg, Brandon Pirri, Matt Puempel, Adam Clendening, Tommy Hughes, Steven Kampfer, Kevin Klein, Michael Paliotta, Brendan Smith, Chris Summers, Magnus Hellberg, Antti Raanta, Mackenzie Skapski
Best "Win Now" Pick: While 27 goals probably isn't the 29-year-old Michael Grabner's norm, he's a capable middle-six winger, whose speed is still a terror on the PK.
Best "Build For The Future" Pick: 24-year-old pivot Oscar Lindberg is probably too good to be buried -- as he was with the Rangers -- on the fourth line. Lindberg
owns a complete game with middle-six potential. Flipping Raanta to the highest bidder would also have been a reasonable option.
What McPhee Did: McPhee selected Lindberg.
Verdict: It's hard to say how much Raanta would've garnered by himself in trade -- perhaps a second or a third? -- as he was packaged later to Arizona along with Derek Stepan for a lottery pick and Anthony DeAngelo. Will Lindberg be worth more than that? Considering the volatility of the goaltending market, McPhee took the safe, but still promising choice. Grade: B.
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