The expansion Vegas Golden Knights’ first-ever player is free agent center Reid Duke, 21, who on Monday signed an entry-level NHL contract with the team.
The Golden Knights last week officially became a team when they made their final expansion-fee payment to the league, allowing them to begin signing college or junior hockey free agents.
After further evaluation from our team doctors, it was determined that the best road to recovery was surgery, Avalanche general manager Joe Sakic said, via the Denver Post. Doing this procedure at this time ensures that Semyon will be fully healthy for the start of training camp.
The 28-year-old has been a reliable netminder for the Avalanche the past three seasons, but his body has broken down on him during the 2016-17 campaign. Varlamov has missed 12 of Colorado’s last 18 games, and he has been ineffective when healthy enough to take the ice.
Varlamov will end the season with a 6-17-0 record, a 3.38 goals-against average, and an .898 save percentage, by far the worst numbers of an NHL career that began eight years ago with the Capitals.
Calvin Pickard has received the majority of the starts in Varlamov’s absence and will be the top choice going forward, with backup from rookie Spencer Martin.