The Vegas Golden Knights stayed relatively quiet during this offseason after
making a lot of noise during the playoffs. Outside of signing Paul Stastny, the
 Golden Knights did not pick up many full-time roster members. They did,
however, see a few players walk away and leave holes in the roster. While the
main stars are already off the market from this year's free agency class, there
 are still plenty of useful NHL starters to fill those depth holes that Vegas
has left open.Cammalleri, Winnik Can Fill Out Third Line

With the departure of David Perron and James Neal, who scored a combined 110
points last season, the team is lacking offensive skill on the wings. The
third-line left wing slot is one of the largest weak points of the team, with
no real replacement brought in so far this offseason. Although it looks as
though the team wanted to save that roster spot for Bobby Ryan from a potential
 Erik Karlsson trade, the team will be in trouble if they can't get another
player in that slot before the season starts.Cammalleri';s shooting percentage
last season was well below his career average. He still puts a lot of shots on
net, so if he can get his shooting percentage anywhere near his average he is a
 good candidate for a bounce-back season. (Gary A. Vasquez/USA TODAY Sports)

Mike Cammalleri and Daniel Winnik are two veteran wingers still on the market
that could help boost the offensive output of the third line. Cammalleri is 36
years old and far from his peak performance, but he can still drive production
in a sheltered role. He had 29 points in 66 games with two teams last season,
and considering he is rumored to be looking at playing in the KHL due to a
lack of NHL interest, he would not be an expensive signing.Related: The Golden
 Knights Must Acquire Artemi Panarin

Winnik provides less offense in his play but is more responsible in his own
zone and can be a factor on the penalty kill. Last season he put up 23 points
in 81 games with the Minnesota Wild, his eighth team in 11 career seasons. Last
 season Winnik had to sign a professional tryout contract in the preseason
before being offered a year-long contract by the Wild and it looks as though
that may be his fate again this season. Although he looked good in his role
with Minnesota, he would not be too much of an upgrade over using Tomas Nosek
on the third line. Vegas might as well save the roster spot for a future
trade.Golden Knights Looking for Center Depth

During last season, center depth was a concerning factor for the Golden
Knights. The team has still yet to address that deficiency past the second-line
 spot. They never had a true second-line center last season, using Erik Haula,
who is not a natural center, in that spot. Stastny fills that hole, but Cody
Eakin had an unimpressive year as the third-line center and needs to be
challenged to step up his game.Mark Letestu had a successful three seasons with
 the Edmonton Oilers, but was traded at the deadline and had a disappointing
end to the year. He went pointless in six playoff games with the Blue Jackets.
(Amy Irvin/The Hockey Writers)

Mark Letestu and Antoine Vermette are two veteran centers that still have
enough gas in the tank to battle Eakin for his position. Letestu is 33 years
old and split last season between the Edmonton Oilers and the Columbus Blue
Jackets. He had the worst full season of his career, but he usually pushes 30
points and double-digit goals. That is similar to what Eakin put up last
season, but Eakin's extremely poor playoff performance has his future with
Vegas in question.Related: Golden Knights Get a Passing Grade in Free Agency

Vermette's career is clearly winding down, as his scoring numbers have gone
down in each of the past five seasons, but he is still a defensively
responsible center who can do well on the third or fourth line. The Golden
Knights shouldn't look to give him more than a year, but he is worth at least a
 tryout contract in the preseason to see how well he can still play.Hamhuis
Would Shore Up Golden Knights'; Defense

Nick Holden was the second biggest offseason signing the Golden Knights went
after to shore up their bottom pairing on defense. While Holden can still play,
 his usage with the Boston Bruins after the trade deadline last season shows
that he is best utilized as a seventh defender. Obviously, Vegas is hoping
Holden can play more minutes than that, but Dan Hamhuis is still on the market
if that opinion changes in the organization before the season starts.Despite
being a defensive defenseman that started almost 60 percent of his shifts in
the defensive zone, Hamhuis had solid enough possession numbers last season. He
 may have slowed down physically, but there is nothing showing he cannot still
keep up skill-wise. (Amy Irvin/The Hockey Writers)

Hamhuis remaining unsigned is a bit of a surprise. He had a great year with the
 Dallas Stars, posting his best offensive numbers since 2013 while remaining a
steady presence in his own zone. If Vegas can get Hamhuis on a one-year
contract, he would be a great foil for Holden. Both of them can split starts
and allow head coach Gerard Gallant to use them to the best of their
ability.Golden Knights Could Consider Another Goalie

One of the biggest scares during last season for the Golden Knights came
towards the beginning of the season, when they lost four goalies to injury at
the same time and had to call up Dylan Ferguson, a 19-year-old who spent the
majority of the season in the WHL. General manager George McPhee never pulled
the trigger on a panic trade to bring in another goalie, but the thought of a
similar situation happening again certainly sticks in his mind. With a few
solid backup options on the market still, Vegas has another chance to make sure
 what happened last season doesn't happen again.Stats may be deceiving for
Pavelec. Last season he put up a .910 save percentage on a sub-par New York
Rangers team, but he only started 12 games. His stats were also boosted by his
relief appearances, as one-quarter of his starts were defined as "really bad"
by Hockey Reference. (Derik Hamilton/USA TODAY Sports)

Kari Lehtonen, Steve Mason, and Ondrej Pavelec are all still waiting on the
market. No team is going to offer them a starting role at this point, so they
know it is either backup duty or retirement time. Lehtonen is the most
confusing leftover, although he has been rumored to be considering retirement.
Mason is probably content with sitting on his $4.1 million buyout from the
Montreal Canadiens this summer. Pavelec would be an interesting addition, but
he might head back to Europe if he doesn't see a guaranteed backup role.

Outside of those three, there aren't many options. It is highly unlikely that
the injury bug hits the goalies as hard as it did last season, but you can
never be too safe. Vegas did bring in Zach Fucale this season as the third
goalie in the AHL which should calm some concerns.Vegas Should Stand Pat

If none of these players made you jump up and down in excitement, you are not
alone. Clearly, none of these players are in high demand, as they have yet to
sign with an NHL team, but guys like Hamhuis and Cammalleri are still useful
everyday players.Related: 3 Takeaways From Fleury's Contract Extension

However, unless they can get any of the players mentioned on league-minimum
one-year contract, it is not worth it to shake up the lineup before the team
even plays a game. Vegas's current roster is good to open the season with, but
if the front office ever gets concerned with their depth, these additions could
 fill the gaps as the season begins.

The post Golden Knights Still Have Options in Free Agency appeared first on The
 Hockey Writers.

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