Next move Golden Knights must make after hiring Ryan Craig as head coach

The Vegas Golden Knights have hired Ryan Craig as their next head coach, replacing John Tortorella. After a run in the American Hockey League with the Henderson Silver Knights, Craig takes over a Stanley Cup Final roster. But that does not mean Vegas will run it back in 2026-27 with every player. The Golden Knights should turn their attention to the trade market, shopping William Karlsson around the league.

Karlsson is one of the few original members of the Golden Knights left on the team. He scored 40 goals in the inaugural season, becoming the face of the Golden Misfits that led Vegas to its first Stanley Cup Final. Then, he scored 17 points in 22 games in the 2023 postseason, helping them win their first title. But with one year left on his contract, his time in Vegas should come to an end.

If this is the end of Karlsson’s time with the Golden Knights, it was an abrupt end. He was knocked out of Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final with an arm injury and did not return for Game 6. He would end his time in Vegas second in regular-season points and third in playoff points.

The Golden Knights should shop Karlsson to young teams looking for veteran leadership. The Columbus Blue Jackets were his original team, and Rick Bowness is looking to change the locker room culture. A trade to the San Jose Sharks seems unlikely considering the two franchises’ checkered past, but he would make sense in that locker room as well.

The Golden Knights are not a sentimental group. They have discarded most of the other Golden Misfits without much pomp and circumstance. There is no reason why they wouldn’t trade Karlsson, especially considering the big contract they have to sign this summer.

Why would Golden Knights trade William Karlsson?

Even though the Golden Knights are known to make a cut-throat trade, they do have to have a good reason to deal Karlsson. This summer, they do, as Pavel Dorofeyev needs a new contract. Dorofeyev is seven years younger than Karlsson and is coming off the best season of his career.

Dorofeyev has to take priority over Karlsson in the Golden Knights’ offseason plans. The Russian forward scored 37 goals in the regular season and added 12 more in the postseason, both career highs. While he slowed down in the Stanley Cup Final, he was not alone among Vegas’ top forwards. The future lies with Dorofeyev, and not with Karlsson.

The Golden Knights have found unique ways to be salary-cap compliant without trading players in the past. Even this year, Alex Pietrangelo missed the entire season with an injury, which allowed them to fit Mitch Marner under the cap. But the rule change that maintains the salary cap through the playoffs prevents too much funny business from Vegas.

The Golden Knights should be able to get some mid-round picks back from Karlsson, but not much more. He has a 10-team no-trade list, so he will have some say over where he goes. Considering the injury and his lack of offensive upside in his mid-30s, a team is not going to give up a first-round pick for him. The Golden Knights have almost nothing left in the picks and prospects department, so anything they can get would be a positive.

If the Golden Knights do not act before July 1, a team could sign Dorofeyev to an offer sheet. That would give Vegas more picks in return, but it would not help them get closer to a Stanley Cup. They must pull off both of these moves before the NHL Draft to ensure they get Dorofeyev signed before someone else grabs him.

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