Vegas Golden Knights Sign Dylan Coghlan to 1-Year Contract

Coghlan is a 27-year-old undrafted, right-shot defenseman. He played his junior hockey in the Western Hockey League for the Tri-City Americans. Although he was not drafted, he earned a spot in the American Hockey League (AHL) with the Chicago Wolves, where he played for two seasons. In 126 AHL games, he recorded 64 points, which earned him his first NHL contract with the Golden Knights, a two-year deal with an average annual value of $762,600.

Coghlan went on to play 88 games throughout the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons. Following his first stint with the Golden Knights, he signed another two-year deal with the Carolina Hurricanes, where he only got into 18 NHL games. Then, for the 2024-25 season, the Hurricanes traded him to the Winnipeg Jets, after which he played only six additional games.

How Coghlan Fits With the Golden Knights

The Golden Knights have been known for having big defensemen since they came into the league as an expansion team. Coghlan fits that mould, standing at 6-foot-2 and weighing 208 pounds. He will likely be a depth defenseman for the Knights who can play bottom pair minutes or jump into the lineup when the injury bug hits.

While Coghlan is not expected to be a difference maker for the Golden Knights in their push for the Stanley Cup, for a team that is strapped against the salary cap, these inexpensive depth signings can be crucial in helping keep the team afloat when making midseason roster changes. He may not make a massive difference, but he is a guy the Golden Knights know to be reliable in a sheltered role.

Coghlan Could Bring a Unique Skillset to the Golden Knights

With Alex Pietrangelo stepping away from the Golden Knights for health reasons, the team is losing a ton of offensive production from their blue line. Coghlan is not a Pietrangelo replacement, but he can bring some of the offense the Knights will be losing. In his AHL career, he has scored 56 goals and has a total of 136 points in 228 games.

He has a great shot from the point, scoring more than 10 goals in all four of the AHL seasons he has played in, with more than 30 games in each. We saw flashes of Coghlan’s offensive talent when he scored 13 points in 59 games for the Golden Knights during the 2021-22 season. This offensive upside is a great thing to have in your sixth or seventh defenseman. Regardless of how many games he plays with the Golden Knights this season, this is a great signing.