GOLDEN KNIGHTS FILL GOALTENDING VACANCY ON A ONE-YEAR DEAL
The Golden Knights have found Logan Thompson’s replacement on the open market, inking Ilya Samsonov to a one-year pact Monday, per a team release. It’s a $1.8M cap hit for Samsonov, GM Kelly McCrimmon confirmed.
They’ve also re-signed RFA forward Pavel Dorofeyev and defenseman Kaedan Korczak to two-year deals.
Vegas may have honored a reported trade request by dealing Thompson to the Capitals for a pair of third-round picks over the weekend, but they’ve now had to settle for a more expensive and arguably worse replacement on the open market.
Samsonov costs more than twice as much as Thompson, whose cap hit was in the $700K range, and is coming off a roller-coaster-like 2023-24 campaign with Toronto that saw him finish with an underwhelming .890 SV% and 3.13 GAA in 40 games.
Samsonov started in Game 1 of the Maple Leafs’ first-round series against the Bruins but struggled to the tune of a .896 SV% and 3.01 GAA in the series.
He was briefly pulled for the younger Joseph Woll, who was nearly instrumental in Toronto’s Games 5 and 6 wins, but an injury to Woll forced Samsonov back into action for the Leafs’ Game 7 loss.
A quick look at Samsonov’s stats indicates he’s also been yo-yo-like from year to year, something Vegas is banking on with this signing. A rebound year could end up proving to be a good value for his cap hit, but it’s certainly more of a gamble than retaining Thompson.
He’ll likely start the season as a pure backup to Adin Hill but could work his way into tandem consideration. Barring injuries, it’s unlikely he’ll play 40+ games like he has with Toronto the past two years. Samsonov had previously expressed a desire for a multi-year deal this summer, too, so settling for a one-year pact likely indicates there wasn’t much of a market.
Dorofeyev returns and will be relied upon heavily to provide cheap depth scoring over the course of his two-year bridge deal. The 23-year-old Russian was limited to 47 games last year and was routinely the 13th forward on a deep Vegas offense, but was a great tertiary scoring option when in the lineup. Going back over the last three years, Dorofeyev has 20 goals and 33 points through his first 67 NHL games – a 40-point pace.
He’s proven he can handle third-line minutes, although with the Knights losing all of Michael Amadio, Jonathan Marchessault and Chandler Stephenson Monday, he may find his way into top-six duties by the end of the season.
Korczak should also be considered for a regular NHL role next season after Alec Martinez departed for the Blackhawks Monday. The 2019 second-round pick is still only 23 and was solid in major league action last year, accumulating nine points and a +12 rating in 29 games for Vegas. He’ll be in sure contention for a roster spot out of the gate.
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