The ever-ambitious Vegas Golden Knights did it again. They flexed economic muscle and performed more salary cap gymnastics.
Their hot pursuit of winger Mitch Marner ended with success. They engineered a sign-and-trade deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs, sending forward Nicolas Roy to Ontario for Marner Monday on the eve of NHL free agency.
Marner signed an eight-year, $96 million deal with the Leafs to facilitate the trade. Had he gone to free agency instead, the longest contract he could have signed with his new team would have been for seven years.
The Golden Knights beat out the Los Angeles Kings, Carolina Hurricanes and several other potential suitors to land Marner.
To create salary cap space for Marner, the Golden Knights are expected to warehouse former Blues captain Alex Pietrangelo in long-term injured reserve next season. The battle-worn Pietrangelo reportedly must recover from multiple injuries.
People are also reading…
The Leafs salvaged something from their difficult position, adding the useful Roy after keeping John Tavares (four years, $4.48 average annual value) and Matthew Knies (six years, $7.75 AAV) with new contracts.
Elsewhere in the NHL Monday:
Multiple teams reportedly pitched Blues general manager Doug Armstrong offers for winger Jordan Kyrou, who gained no-trade protection via his contract on Tuesday.
Making full use of Florida’s lack of a state tax, Panthers GM Bill Zito managed to re-sign Brad Marchand (nearly $32 million over six years) and Aaron Ekblad ($48.8 million over eight years) after securing Sam Bennett ($64 million over eight years) with an earlier agreement.
The Edmonton Oilers locked in defenseman Evan Bouchard, who took a shorter-term deal (four years) with a $10.5 million average annual value. Bouchard, 25, gave himself another shot at free agency down the road — a decision that could become more common for high-end players given the league’s soaring salary cap.
The Minnesota Wild received former Blues star Vladimir Tarasenko from the Detroit Red Wings in a straight-up contract dump. Vladdy carries a $4.75 million salary cap hit next season.
Ivan Provorov did his part to boost prices for top 4 defensemen by signing a seven-year, $59.5 million contract. His AAV is $2.5 million higher than Blues cornerstone Colton Parayko.
Here is what folks have been writing about the marketplace:
Kristen Shilton, : “It's no secret what Vegas is getting in Marner and why the long-term, big-money commitment makes sense. Marner has 221 goals and 741 points in 657 career regular-season games. He's an elite playmaker, elevates his teammates and can navigate a puck through traffic in the slot area better than almost any skater in the league. Marner is also excellent on the power play and a superb penalty killer, giving him a covetable all-around game that should pair well with anyone with whom he plays in Vegas.”
Adam Proteau, The Hockey News: “From the time he was drafted fourth overall in 2015, Marner was seen as a very special player and a cornerstone component of the Leafs’ full rebuild. He initially responded to the pressure of playing in Toronto very well: in his first NHL season in 2016-17, Marner posted 42 assists and 61 points in 77 games, and in his third year, he had 68 assists and 94 points. He ended up recording at least 90 points in four seasons and averaged at least a point per game in seven of his nine campaigns. This past season, Marner had a career-best 75 assists and 102 points. Unfortunately, as Marner’s Leafs career unfolded, there was a bigger problem that overshadowed his regular-season dominance — namely, his inability to lead Toronto to deep playoff runs. Without question, it was always unfair to Marner that he was scapegoated for the Maple Leafs’ slew of early playoff exits. He was never the kind of player who could put the team on his back and pound opponents into dust. Still, there was always a sense that Marner wasn’t built for playoff success. Leafs Nation watched him flail and wail as the Buds were conquered time and again in the post-season. While Marner was a point-per-game player in the post-season, he never could come up with game-changing moments when the Leafs needed them most.”
Pierre LeBrun, The Athletic: “The Montreal Canadiens have continued to show interest in ӣƵ Blues top-six winger Jordan Kyrou throughout the weekend, as have several teams. Kyrou’s full no-trade kicks in Tuesday, and the Blues have been talking to teams to determine the extent of the market for him before deciding whether or not to pull the trigger or keep him once his no-trade kicks in. If the Habs can acquire Kyrou, which would require multiple assets to be sent to ӣƵ, Montreal would also need to clear out more cap space this summer to make all the math work or at least have the cap in a place that makes Montreal more comfortable entering next season.”
Ryan S. Clark, : “GM Doug Armstrong said in May that he doesn't expect Torey Krug to play next season. If that's the case, that would leave the Blues needing another top-six defenseman, while possibly trying to acquire one more for depth. Armstrong told reporters days before the draft that the Blues will have the long-term injured reserve space from Krug's contract, which is on the books at $6.5 million annually. Aside from that, the Blues appear to have their top-nine forwards situated while having both goalies under contract with Joel Hofer signing a two-year extension Saturday.”
Adam Vingan, Sportsnet: “(Jake) Allen, who turns 35 in August, posted strong numbers as the backup to Jacob Markstrom in New Jersey last season. He saved 0.34 goals above expected per 60 minutes, which ranked 14th out of 53 goaltenders who played at least 25 games. Markstrom, by comparison, finished 24th with 0.18 goals saved above expected per 60. Allen’s 2.66 goals-against average in 31 appearances (29 starts) was 18th among qualified goaltenders. After Allen, the best available goaltender could either be Calgary’s Dan Vladar, 27, or Detroit’s Alex Lyon, 32. Vladar and Lyon ranked 28th and 29th, respectively, in goals saved above expected per 60. Both also recorded quality-start rates of more than 50 per cent. Vladar prevented more goals than expected in 17 of his 29 starts (58.6 per cent), while Lyon did so in 14 of his 26 starts (53.8 per cent).”
Tom Gulitti, : “The New York Rangers had Stanley Cup aspirations entering this season after reaching the Eastern Conference Final last season but fell well short, failing to qualify for the playoffs for the first time since 2021. New York has a new coaching staff headed by Mike Sullivan, who replaced Peter Laviolette, and is expected to be aggressive in continuing to revamp its roster with the hope of returning to Cup contention next season. The Rangers cleared some salary cap space by trading forward Chirs Kreider ($6.5 million AAV) to the Anaheim Ducks on June 12. Strengthening their defense and forward group will be priorities.”
Megaphone
“His track record of winning. His track record of scoring. He's a bigger body. He's got a lot of experience. I think he's a player that is in need of a fresh start. The contract, the money and everything just kind of fits, I think. We're at a place that Vladdy can come and hopefully get back to the form that he's had in past years. I know he's excited about it, and we're excited to have him.”
Minnesota Wild GM Bill Guerin, on acquiring Tarasenko.
