The goal was to get the best person in every available position.
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"You get one chance to do it right," McPhee said.
That chance comes when Vegas, the NHL's 31st franchise, plays its first regular-season game at the Dallas Stars on Friday (8:30 p.m. ET; NHLN, SN360, TVA Sports, FS-AW, ATTSN-RM, NHL.TV).
The Golden Knights are the League's first expansion team since the Minnesota Wild and Columbus Blue Jackets joined in 2000. Outside of the hockey world, they are a curiosity because they are the first major professional sports franchise in Las Vegas.
McPhee, hired on July 13, 2016 by owner Bill Foley, consulted with other expansion survivors: Bobby Clarke (Florida Panthers), David Poile (Nashville Predators) and Doug Risebrough (Minnesota) when it came to putting together the team.
"They all said to me it will be the most enjoyable year you've had in the game and they were absolutely right," said McPhee, who was GM of the Washington Capitals for 17 seasons. "Everything feels positive. You haven't lost a game and everybody is excited to be here whether it's their first job in the NHL or a promotion in the NHL. Or a second chance for people that had lost jobs.
"Everybody is really upbeat and positive and there's this year-long glow around your team. It's been a lot of fun."
The Capitals made the Stanley Cup Playoffs 10 times during McPhee's run in Washington including the Stanley Cup Final in 1998, when they lost to the Detroit Red Wings in four games. He was fired on April 26, 2014 after the Capitals missed the playoffs that season but wasn't out of hockey long, hired as a special adviser by New York Islanders general manger Garth Snow in 2015.
But the Golden Knights job represented a second chance in the general manager's chair.