The Golden Knights announced they’ve re-signed RFA forwards Raphael Lavoie, Jonas Rondbjerg, and Cole Schwindt to one-year deals. Lavoie’s deal pays him $775K in the NHL and $235K in the AHL with a $300K guarantee, per Renaud Lavoie of TVA. Meanwhile, PuckPedia reports that Rondbjerg gets $775K in the NHL and $250K in the AHL with a $375K guarantee. PuckPedia also has Schwindt’s terms which check in at $825K on a one-way agreement.
Lavoie, 24, began last season in the Oilers organization. He’ll hope for more stability this year after being waived by Edmonton, claimed by Vegas, waived by Vegas, re-claimed by Edmonton, waived again by Edmonton, and finally re-claimed by Vegas before being sent directly to AHL Henderson in a matter of days last October.
Many thought the Oilers would lose Lavoie on waivers after the 6’4″ winger potted 28 goals and 50 points in 66 games for AHL Bakersfield in 2023-24. Injuries limited Lavoie’s effectiveness somewhat in 2024-25, but he still put together a decent 17-10–27 scoring line in 42 games on an underwhelming Henderson squad.
He got into nine NHL games with the Knights throughout the year but went pointless, averaging 10:05 per game. It was his second taste of NHL action after also going pointless in seven games with Edmonton the year before.
After not taking a meaningful step forward last season, the 2019 second-rounder is likely destined for waivers and a minor-league role again in the fall. He’ll battle for an extra forward spot but isn’t a candidate to begin the year in the opening night lineup unless more injuries happen, thanks to Vegas’ much-improved forward depth.
Rondbjerg, a Golden Knights draft pick in the third round of their inaugural 2017 class, is the only player from that group still with the organization. The Denmark-born winger has topped out as a serviceable fringe NHL forward, recording 10 points in 76 games for the Knights in a spattering of recalls over the past four years.
He’s cleared waivers without incident before and should do so again in the fall. The former captain of Denmark’s World Junior team is now an alternate with the Silver Knights, where he had 11 goals and 26 points with a minus-six rating in 53 appearances last year.
Schwindt is the likeliest of the trio to end up on the 23-man NHL roster in October. Vegas claimed the 24-year-old off waivers from the Flames during training camp last year, and while he wasn’t an everyday piece in the lineup, he was a serviceable extra forward for the entirety of the campaign. He made 42 appearances after seeing only seven games of NHL action over the previous three years, scoring his first NHL goal in the process and adding seven assists for eight points.
The 6’2″ Ontario native can slot in at center if needed, taking over 200 draws last season and winning 50.5% of them. A three-time 30-point scorer in the AHL, Vegas seems to like his game enough to keep him around as a 13th or 14th forward for at least one more year.