We’re officially 10 days away from the start of the free agency frenzy. With six unsigned players, the Golden Knights are expected to be hogging hockey headlines up to July 1st. Clearly, the biggest decision for the Golden Knights front office is how committed they are to keeping franchise leading goal scorer Jonathan Marchessault. Putting the Marchessault dilemma aside, VGK’s FO has already made a decision public on one of their unrestricted free agents.
Vegas made it clear that they were not going to put me back under contract. I’m excited, but at the same time I’m stressed as everything comes into play,. We’ll see whether it’s July 1st or a little later. Hoping we will have good news. –Anthony Mantha to RDS
Mantha opened up to Catherine Savoie of RDS at a charity golf event earlier this week. He was informed by the Golden Knights that the deadline acquisition would not be offered a contract to stay in Las Vegas. Normally, the Golden Knights are very tight lipped when it comes to roster management. Over the past eight summers, it’s been rare to hear a player publicly announce the Golden Knights were passing on his services.
This week another bottom six forward’s future plans were leaked which would unlikely include the Golden Knights. Sources close to SinBin.vegas indicated the “so-called” fourth liner William Carrier and the Dallas Stars have mutual interest in each other. On Thursday, Sportsnet’s Elliiotte Friedman confirmed our source’s expectations for Carrier.
One guy I heard who could be on Dallas’ radar, and I think could be a great fit for them is William Carrier. That’s one name that some people told me that was on Dallas’ radar if he gets to the market. – Elliotte Friedman on Sportsnet.ca
It all makes sense right? Dallas is a big, physical team with some unfinished business. They undoubtedly have their eyes set on winning a Stanley Cup after being eliminated in back-to-back conference finals. Acquiring Carrier would help solidify the Stars bottom six, add some extra muscle and offer a heavy dose of forechecking. Plus, he’s played under coach Pete DeBoer for 2.5 seasons. Beyond Vegas, Dallas is certainly a good fit for the Golden Knights franchise leader in hits (337) and unsuccessful wrap around attempts (37). (He did score that one in the playoffs, and it was glorious!)
While it’s clear that Mantha is not part of the Golden Knights summer plans, we haven’t heard much else from the club about the remaining unrestricted free agents. Vegas’ cap gymnastics have yet to play out in the open, but you can be assured that it’s being worked out behind the scenes. As long as there’s room for #81.
