Between Free Agency chatter and swirling trade rumors, the Vegas Golden Knights have been at the forefront of the news. Throughout the week, the intrigue heightened; with the NHL Entry Draft just hours away, the whispers have only gotten louder.
On Friday’s episode of the 32 Thoughts Podcast, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman weighed in on the smoke surrounding the Golden Knights.
“There’ve been a lot of wild rumors around Vegas,” began Friedman. “First of all, because of all the [Mitch] Marner stuff that we’ve been talking about. But also, there were some crazy rumors that came out about them this week. I’ve learned that there’s no absolutes, but I would really be shocked if they traded William Karlsson; I would really be shocked if they traded Tomáš Hertl.”
“I think I said on the radio on Thursday,” continued Friedman, “I’m getting mixed signals on [Ivan] Barbashev. And then I got a call from someone who said, add him to your you’d be really shocked list if Barbashev got traded.
“They’ve got Reilly Smith coming back, they’ve got Brandon Saad coming back,” Friedman reported. “But I do think there are some players who could be going out. There’s been a lot of talk about Nic Hague. I think there’s been some interest for them in Nicolas Roy; he’s been another guy that there’s been interest in.
Read More: Making Sense of Golden Knights Trade Rumors
“It’s been reported that they’ve had interest in Bowen Byram; I don’t know as much about that. But I’ve also heard that they’ve had interest in Rasmus Andersson,” Friedman stated. “I think the Golden Knights have a lot of balls in the air.
“And, of course, a year from now, [Jack] Eichel is due an extension,” continued Friedman. “He’s a guy who really wants to win. I think a lot of those guys, especially since they’re in a place that people really want to lay, in a no-tax state, I think there’s a willingness to– look, Reilly Smith just came back for a pretty low deal. Saad had a market for him out there– there were some teams who were disappointed to hear he was going back there– and it sounds like he’s taking a below-market deal.
“We’ll see what some of these other guys do, but Vegas is definitely a team [that I’m watching],” Friedman finished. “Especially since I’ve gotten big pushback on the Karlssons, Hertls, and Barbashevs of the world in terms of their availability. So, I’m really watching them.”
Things get a whole lot more interesting if the Golden Knights truly aren’t trading one of Hertl, Karlsson, or Barbashev. If they don’t move out significant salary, they’re likely out of the Mitch Marner sweepstakes. And after exiting the postseason with a whimper, it’s hard to see them running it back with the same group.
The Golden Knights’ unwillingness to trade players may be related to the status of Alex Pietrangelo. Friedman previously reported that the veteran defenseman’s health could be in question for the 2025-26 season.
“I don’t want to put a timeline on this,” said Friedman on Friday. “But I do think eventually here, we’re going to get some clarity on Alex Pietrangelo.”
FOR MORE GOLDEN KNIGHTS NEWS AND UP-TO-DATE COVERAGE, VISIT VEGAS HOCKEY NOW AND LIKE OUR FACEBOOK PAGE.
FOLLOW US ON :
