Prior to the Expansion Draft the term of the day was “player redistribution.” George McPhee and the Golden Knights front office used the term over and over expressing concerns that there might be a ton of player movement prior to the Expansion Draft. Well, it appears McPhee took matters into his own hands and put the kibosh on that.
All these VGK deals have created quite a logjam. NHL GMs alternately awestruck/aggravated at how VGK GM George McPhee orchestrated it all.
— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) June 21, 2017
Many talking about "The Pledge." That is, if VGK did deal with team, VGK insisted that team not do any other deals that could harm VGK.
— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) June 21, 2017
So from the moment a team did a deal with VGK, that team couldn't make pre-freeze trade with a third party if it affected VGK in any way.
— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) June 21, 2017
The Pledge!
Essentially, McPhee told every GM he made a deal with, they’re not allowed to make another deal prior to the the rosters freezing on Saturday night. Reports have indicated that the Golden Knights may have close to 15 trades completed at the Expansion Draft, and it’s likely about half of them were done before the freeze.
