The Hockey News’ NHL summer splash rankings are in the home stretch, with the Vegas Golden Knights in third place. Our rankings focus on each team’s off-season additions, departures, hirings and firings to see which teams improved, worsened or stayed the same. It's not necessarily who had the best or worst off-seasons, although there were exceptions at the bottom of the rankings for teams that did significantly less than expected, and there are a couple of squads in the top tier that did more than expected to prevent being much worse. One of the NHL’s boldest teams in its short history, the Golden Knights [http://thn.com/vegas] once again acquired a marquee-level talent. In 2024, it was Calgary Flames [http://thn.com/calgary] defenseman Noah Hanifin and San Jose Sharks center Tomas Hertl. In 2021, it was former Buffalo Sabres [http://thn.com/buffalo] star center Jack Eichel. In 2019, it was Ottawa Senators [http://thn.com/ottawa] right winger Mark Stone. So Vegas GM Kelly McCrimmon wasn’t really shocking anyone when he made a trade this summer for former Toronto Maple Leafs [http://thn.com/toronto] superstar Mitch Marner. Sometimes, a team ranks relatively higher in these summer splash rankings because they’ve made many moves. But in the case of the Golden Knights, sometimes one single move can elevate you to a higher level. As we’ll explore below, Vegas is now positioned to be one of the NHL’s most dangerous groups next year. ADDITIONS Mitch Marner (RW), Colton Sissons (RW), Jeremy Lauzon (D) The Breakdown: The Golden Knights weren’t flush with salary cap space heading into the summer, but McCrimmon acquired the best pending free agent on the market because he made the cold-blooded choices to move on from a couple of veterans and expects to put another player on long-term injured reserve. Yes, Colton Sissons and Jeremy Lauzon are footsoldier-type players who played for the Nashville Predators [http://thn.com/nashville] last season, but who’s kidding who – acquiring Marner as a 28-year-old who just put up 75 assists and 102 points last season is one of McCrimmon’s greatest coups. Marner is an excellent two-way star who does a lot of things that help teams win – at least, in the regular season. But in Vegas, he’s going to be able to relax and be part of an organization that has plenty of Stanley Cup experience, good and bad. In Toronto, it was mostly bad, and that’s why Leafs fans will be watching closely this season to see if Marner can deliver in the playoffs in a way he never did with the Maple Leafs. If Vegas can unlock that next-level performance from Marner, the trade and lucrative contract extension will be well worth it. At both ends of the ice, the Golden Knights are better, directly as a result of what Marner brings to the table. NHL Prospect Pool Overview ’25-26: Vegas Golden Knights Have One Top-Tier Prospect [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/96ea8b33-be65-4767-a205-6137121dbaf2.webp] NHL Prospect Pool Overview ’25-26: Vegas Golden Knights Have One Top-Tier Prospect The Vegas Golden Knights are today’s focus in the NHL prospect pool overview series. [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-prospect-pool-overview-25-26-vegas-golden-knights-have-one-top-tier-prospect] DEPARTURES Nicolas Roy (C), Victor Olofsson (LW), Tanner Pearson (LW), Nicolas Hague (D) The Breakdown: The Golden Knights had to pay a price to fit Marner’s enormous salary into their payroll, and that meant giving up on a couple of capable competitors in trades – Roy was sent to Toronto in the Marner trade, and defenseman Hague was traded to the Predators. Roy’s experience as a gritty third-line center who puts up at least 30 points a season will be missed, as will the 17 minutes of physical defending Hague [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/nashville-predators/players/analysis-how-nic-hague-can-compliment-roman-josi-s-game-on-nashville-predators-1st-defensive-pairing] averaged per game. Pearson was a decent depth forward who had 27 points, while Victor Olofsson had 29 in 56 games. Although he’s still under contract, defenseman Alex Pietrangelo’s health concerns make him a potential departure. Pietrangelo lived up to expectations since he came to Vegas from the St. Louis Blues [http://thn.com/stlouis], but all the miles on his odometer have caught up to him. He announced on June 30 that it’s unlikely his body will recover to the standard an NHL player needs to compete, so he could end up on the long-term injury reserve for the final two seasons of his contract. That hurts, since Pietrangelo still averaged 22:24 in ice time last year, and he produced 33 points from the blueline. But the Golden Knights’ depth on ‘D’ should help soften the blow. THE BOTTOM LINE The team that landed Marner this summer was always going to be high on these NHL summer splash rankings. Marner’s all-around skill set makes him worth the $12 million per season [https://puckpedia.com/player/mitchell-marner] he’ll be making for the next eight years, and that move was the biggest home run of any NHL team this summer. With Marner in the lineup, his creativity and finesse game will change what Vegas is as a team, but Vegas will also change who Marner is as a player. At least, that’s the plan for Marner. And we see it as a solid plan. The Golden Knights are focused on being a legitimate Cup threat once again, and acquiring Marner makes them exactly that. SUMMER SPLASH RANKINGS 3. Vegas Golden Knights 4. Carolina Hurricanes [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-4-carolina-hurricanes] 5. Anaheim Ducks [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-5-anaheim-ducks] 6. Philadelphia Flyers [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-6-philadelphia-flyers] 7. Vancouver Canucks [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-7-vancouver-canucks] 8. San Jose Sharks [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-8-san-jose-sharks] 9. Utah Mammoth [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-9-utah-mammoth] 10. New York Rangers [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-10-new-york-rangers] 11. Detroit Red Wings [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-11-detroit-red-wings] 12. New Jersey Devils [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-splash-rankings-no-12-new-jersey-devils] 13. St. Louis Blues [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-13-st-louis-blues] 14. Pittsburgh Penguins [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-14-pittsburgh-penguins] 15. Colorado Avalanche [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-15-colorado-avalanche] 16. Ottawa Senators [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-16-ottawa-senators] 17. Boston Bruins [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-17-boston-bruins] 18. Edmonton Oilers [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-18-edmonton-oilers] 19. Minnesota Wild [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-19-minnesota-wild] 20. Seattle Kraken [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-20-seattle-kraken] 21. Columbus Blue Jackets [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-21-columbus-blue-jackets] 22. Washington Capitals [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-22-washington-capitals] 23. Nashville Predators [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-23-nashville-predators] 24. New York Islanders [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-24-new-york-islanders] 25. Tampa Bay Lightning [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-25-tampa-bay-lightning] 26. Toronto Maple Leafs [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-26-toronto-maple-leafs] 27. Dallas Stars [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-27-dallas-stars] 28. Calgary Flames [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-28-calgary-flames] 29. Los Angeles Kings [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-29-los-angeles-kings] 30. Winnipeg Jets [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-30-winnipeg-jets] 31. Chicago Blackhawks [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-31-chicago-blackhawks] 32. Buffalo Sabres [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-summer-splash-rankings-no-32-buffalo-sabres] Get the latest news and trending stories by following The Hockey News on Google News [https://news.google.com/publications/CAAqBwgKMK-q0gsw7sXpAw?hl=en-CA&gl=CA&ceid=CA%3Aen] and by subscribing to The Hockey News newsletter here [http://eepurl.com/i7OC4I]. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com.
