ASSOCIATED PRESS
Russian athlete Nikita Gusev celebrates after scoring a goal during the third period of the men’s gold medal hockey game against Germany at the 2018 Winter Olympics, Sunday, Feb. 25, 2018, in Gangneung, South Korea.
Tuesday, July 30, 2019 | 2 a.m.
When the Golden Knights signed Nikita Gusev to an entry-level deal in the spring, the expectation was that he would sign another deal this summer and make his Vegas debut in the fall. Vegas management probably even had an idea of what the value of that new contract would look like.
That didn’t happen.
Vegas traded Gusev to New Jersey on Monday for two draft picks, leaving many to wonder what went wrong. The answer is simple: Gusev’s salary ask was higher than they anticipated, General Manager George McPhee said.
“Our inability to reach a contract agreement that made sense for us (was the biggest reason for the trade),” McPhee said. “His request was more than we thought reasonable for us.”
Gusev signed a two-year deal with New Jersey worth $4.5 million per year, where Vegas was offering $2 million per year, according to The Athletic.
McPhee made it clear he was not willing to trade more roster players for cap space. The Golden Knights shipped out Erik Haula and Colin Miller in separate deals this summer, and including the Gusev trade, Vegas received one player in return in Carolina prospect Nicolas Roy.
The Golden Knights believe they have in-house replacements for both Haula and Miller and did not want to trade impending free agents like Cody Eakin, Ryan Reaves or Nick Holden simply for cap space.
“The players that have been moved we don’t believe have taken away from our core,” McPhee said. “What we didn’t want to do was to tear the team apart to accommodate one player.”
It’s also clear McPhee is unsure of what Gusev can be. McPhee lauded his hockey sense and hands, but knocked his size (5-foot-9, 163 pounds) and said he doesn’t have elite NHL speed. Spurred in part by the cap, the Golden Knights were not willing to risk dollars and ice time on Gusev’s potential.
Trading away pieces now does not mean Vegas won’t add to its roster later. The Golden Knights have flexibility with five draft picks in the first three rounds of the 2020 draft as well as three second-round picks in 2021. And they still have all of their first-round selections, which could be valuable on the trade market around the deadline.
Most important, the current team is still pretty good. The Golden Knights bring back all of last year’s defensemen — minus Miller — and will add a rookie defenseman to the roster who they feel can fill Miller’s role. Haula missed most of last season after suffering a knee injury in November, and Vegas will have a full season of Mark Stone in 2019-20. Stone, who came over in a midseason trade, was arguably their best player.
Missing out on Gusev wasn’t ideal. But by no means does it mean the Knights will struggle in the upcoming season.
“We’ve been aggressive in signing players to deals that make sense for the player and the team, now and in the future,” McPhee said. “We’re just as good, if not better, than last year.”
