The Vegas Golden Knights are never afraid to make a splash.
After a disappointing five-game exit to the Edmonton Oilers in the Western Conference Semifinals, the Knights head into the 2025 offseason with revenge on their minds.
To get that revenge, however, they will need to add some scoring juice up front. One potential option is the Toronto Maple Leafs’ soon-to-be estranged winger Mitch Marner.
According to Marco D’Amico of RG Media, Vegas is looking to trade Tomáš Hertl to an Eastern Conference team (keep an eye out for the Carolina Hurricanes) to free up cap space for a possible Marner contract.
Hertl may turn 32 in November, but he is still a highly effective top-six center. In his first and potentially final full season with the Knights, he recorded 32 goals and 61 points over 73 games.
Despite his fit in Vegas, he is set to make over $8.13 million through 2029-30. That term, and that value, are too steep for the Knights to also add a premier player like Marner, and they would be wise to make the swap.
Marner is not a perfect player, and was under heavy flak from the crazed fanbase and media in Toronto. However, a change of scenery feels like the right course, and where better than a Vegas organization that has become a model of consistency?
Marner would also receive masterclass lessons on winning in the playoffs from veterans such as Jack Eichel, Mark Stone, and Alex Pietrangelo. He needs to play a heavier, more physical game that time of year, and all three of those stars know which buttons to press.
