Alex Pietrangelo Signs With The Golden Knights

by | Oct 12, 2020 | News, NHL, Rumors | 15 comments

Sportsnet and TSN report Alex Pietrangelo has agreed to a seven-year, $61.6 million contract with the Vegas Golden Knights. The annual average value is $8.8 million. Elliotte Friedman reports the deal comes with a full no-movement clause.

Alex PIetrangelo has joined the Vegas Golden Knights (NHL Images).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: To the surprise of no one, the Golden Knights land the big fish in this year’s UFA pond. Pietrangelo, 30, is among the NHL’s elite defensemen who captained the St. Louis Blues to their first-ever Stanley Cup in 2019. His experience, leadership and all-around skills will provide a significant boost to their blue line.

The contract is expensive and lengthy, with an annual cap hit and a no-movement clause that could become burdensome for Vegas should Pietrangelo’s skills decline over the latter half of the deal. In the short term, however, his presence should keep the Golden Knights among the Cup contenders.

Cap Friendly reports Pietrangelo’s contract pushes the Golden Knights above the $81.5 million cap ceiling by over $6.9 million. They can sit over the cap by 10 percent during the offseason but must be cap compliant when the 2020-21 season opens sometime next year.

The Golden Knights have reportedly been trying to shed salary by shopping goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury ($7 million AAV through 2021-22) and defenseman Nate Schmidt ($5.95 million AAV through 2024-25). One of them, or perhaps someone else (Jonathan Marchessault?) could be playing elsewhere when the regular season begins.

**UPDATE** The Golden Knights didn’t take long to shed some salary, trading Nate Schmidt to the Vancouver Canucks for a 2021 third-round pick. 







15 Comments

  1. Wow I thought McCrimmon was a solid GM then he gives out 1-2 m more than needed and a full NMC when he had no competitors and AP over a barrel. Lol

    • I’m with you on this one, Wendel. At this stage, I’m not sure who Vegas was bidding against. By my count, no one. Thus this salary was way too high. And I don’t see why the NMC was necessary to add. What was AP going to do if they said ‘no’ to the NMC? The same thing he did when they said ‘yes’. Now they’ve spent too much and on a contract they won’t ever (easily) be able to unload.

    • Pietrangelo could of decided to go anywhere else for less money. If Vegas said “no, we are not paying you”. Pietro could of signed a 1 year deal with any other team for far less if he felt slighted.

      If Vegas wanted him they had to pay for him and not disrespect him by low balling.

    • It does give one pause for thought – like WTF kind of thought

  2. Think VGS protects Theodore and Pietrangelo & Lehner on the backend and Stone, Tuch, Karlsson, Smith & Marchessault

    8 skaters

    Seattle will grab someone so they are good to compete for the next 5 years

    IMO

    • Vegas is immune for the draft lottery. They are not participating. Even with the delayed start. Vegas gets no cut of the expansion cheque and loses no players.

      • thanks for the info…did not realize that.

    • Vegas is exempt from the expansion draft.

      • As a Panthers’ fan, I’m furious over this. How would you not at least match a third round pick from Vancouver???
        This was a perfect chance to legitimately upgrade for CHEAP. Did they try to call Vegas’ bluff? Did they not think anyone else would bid on Schmidt? I want to know how this deal fell through.
        2 more years of Barkov and 3 more with Huberdeau on INCREDIBLE contracts… Their prime years are wasting away. Hoffman, Dadonov and Haula all needing to at least be replaced, if not upgraded over. Such a wasted opportunity…

    • @ihatecrosby – as a note, the 8 skaters doesn’t include the goalie and is used when a team wants to protect more than 3 defensemen. So the options are:
      – 7F + 3D + 1G or;
      – 8F/D + 1G

  3. Good luck in Vegas to you AP. You forever will be the first Blues captain to lift the cup for STL. Thanks for all you did and best wishes!

  4. Nice deal for Vancouver.

  5. Canucks luvin Schmidt for only the cost of a 3rd.

    • I guess! Good move to fill in one of the departures.

  6. Well Lyle,

    You need to change your response to “To the surprise of ONE”—I will never quite understand when BOTH sides said that “they wanted to make it work in St. Louis”, that it didn’t work!?!?

    (However, I think 8.8 is TOO much and 7 yrs. is TOO long)