Is Vegas Right?
By Michael Aker
While all 30 general managers and scouting departments are placing the finishing touches on their rosters for 2016-17, personnel decisions this summer and next will be impacted following the announcement of a franchise being awarded to Las Vegas and beginning operation for the 2017-18 season.
As former Rangers/Devils tough guy George McPhee begins to assemble his new staff in Nevada, hockey pundits will continue to debate the pros and cons of the expansion draft leading up to next July (in layman’s terms every team will lose one useful player), as GMs must be sure not to expose the wrong player or they could lose their job (ironically the Filip Forsberg for Martin Erat trade McPhee made in 2013 played a huge role in his dismissal as Washington GM).