The Vegas Golden Knights entered the offseason without any real need for major upgrades after the team dominated in the postseason and won its first ever Stanley Cup in 2022-23. The Knights are in a great spot heading into next season, with most of the team still intact that helped bring a championship to Las Vegas. This squad has an excellent chance to make another deep run in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Still, GM Kelly McCrimmon has made some very smart moves this summer, offloading Reilly Smith to the Pittsburgh Penguins and using the cap space to bring back both of its pending free agents in Adin Hill and Ivan Barbashev. With those two locked up, the Knights are in perfect position heading into 2023-24, and will have around $3 million in cap space to potentially make a move at the NHL Trade Deadline.

Re-signed Adin Hill to two-year deal

Adin Hill went from a backup goaltender with the San Jose Sharks to a Stanley Cup champion in Las Vegas — and Conn Smythe contender — in the span of a year. It's hard to believe that he actually dressed for two American Hockey League games, one with the San Jose Barracuda and one with the Henderson Silver Knights.

Hill was absolutely incredible when his team needed him — which happened when Laurent Brossoit went down with an injury during Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinal against the Edmonton Oilers. The 27-year-old proceeded to lead the team to victory over the Oilers; he then followed it up by allowing just twelve goals in a six-game triumph over the Dallas Stars in the Western Conference Final.

After the Knights defeated the Florida Panthers in five games to win the Stanley Cup, Hill finished third in voting for the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP, behind only teammates Jonathan Marchessault and Jack Eichel.

Needless to say, the Canadian is well-deserving of the two-year, $9.8 million contract he was awarded in the offseason. With Jonathan Quick headed to the New York Rangers and Brossoit going back to the Winnipeg Jets, he is the undisputed starter in Las Vegas for the next two seasons.

Re-signed Ivan Barbashev to five-year deal

Ivan Barbashev won a Stanley Cup with the St. Louis Blues in 2019, and his experience showed in the 2023 postseason. He was excellent for the Knights, scoring seven goals and 18 points over 22 playoff contests as he won his second ring in five seasons. He was extended to a five-year, $25 million deal by McCrimmon early on in free agency, a well-deserved pact that will keep him in the desert for most of the 2020s.

Barbashev figures to rejoin Eichel and Marchessault on the top line as the team looks to go back-to-back next season. The 27-year-old Russian has proven himself to be an excellent playoff performer, and he will be motivated to play well considering McCrimmon chose him over Reilly Smith, one of the original ‘Golden Misfits' that had been with the team since their inception in 2017.

Roster is mostly the same — and that's a good thing

There won't be too many new faces in T-Mobile Arena when training camp opens later this year — and that's exactly how the Golden Knights' brass wanted it. This is one of the deepest teams in the National Hockey League, led by legitimate superstars in Jack Eichel and Mark Stone and featuring the type of complementary players it takes to win the Stanley Cup.

Vegas has as good a chance as any team to win it all again next year. Although, with the parity in the league, the Golden Knights could realistically lose in Round 1, there's a great chance they are knocking on the door as they look to begin a dynasty in the Western Conference. Qualifying offers were given to restricted free agents Brett Howden and Pavel Dorofeyev, although long-term deals have yet to be reached with them.

Final Grade: B+

It was a phenomenal season that ended with a storybook conclusion for the 2022-23 Vegas Golden Knights. Most of the players on the team have spent the summer drinking out of the Stanley Cup and enjoying the stardom that goes along with winning one of sport's hardest trophies.

But when training camp opens and it's time to get down to business, this is a team that will be difficult to dethrone, and motivated to go back-to-back with nearly the same roster that won it all last month. The lack of acquiring or signing any new players that will make a real difference is the only reason McCrimmon's Knights aren't in ‘A' territory, but they get a solid ‘B+' for a very commendable summer.