Expansion team in Vegas hopes to attack, entertain

It's Las Vegas, after all.

George McPhee, the general manager of the NHL's expansion franchise in Nevada, spoke with Sports Illustrated's Alex Prewitt and described his vision for the team he's been tasked with putting together.

"I'd like to build it the same way we built the Washington teams - big, talented teams that can score goals," McPhee said. "I think that's the way the game should be played."

Before focusing on a roster, McPhee has to fill out his front office, and he told Prewitt that additional hires have been made: A director of player development (officially Wil Nichol, a former Capitals scout); a director of hockey operations; a salary cap director; and a goalie director. More directors - in pro and amateur scouting - are expected to be hired in the coming days.

McPhee, now 58, spent 17 seasons in D.C. and was the architect of the best Capitals outfit in history. While a Stanley Cup eluded him, a Washington team led by Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom has consistently been one of the more exciting clubs in the league.

"We are in the entertainment business and we certainly want to win, but you want to entertain while you're doing it," McPhee added. "We're not going to play sit-back hockey. We're going to attack."

Welcome words, surely, in an era when coaches, systems, and goaltenders seem to have a more significant impact on the game than star offensive players. However, putting together an attacking expansion team will be far easier said than done.

Working in Las Vegas' favor is the fact that next June's expansion draft will leave a number of established players available. But McPhee knows it's a process, and that scouting trumps all.

"You have to find elite players in the draft," McPhee said when he was hired last month. "We'll get a nice squad together from the expansion draft, but our elite players will come through drafting."