Canadiens, Penguins, Red Wings Interested In Nicolas Hague
Nicolas Hague‘s trade market continues to percolate. The Canadiens, Penguins, and Red Wings have joined the previously reported Flyers in demonstrating interest in the Golden Knights’ pending RFA defenseman’s services, according to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period today. Pagnotta added that the Golden Knights have informed Hague’s camp their focus is on a trade rather than a new contract, although a move is “not a guarantee.”
Hague is an intriguing option for teams looking to add a lefty who can cycle into top-four minutes amid a rather weak UFA market. He would slot in the third tier of available left-shot rearguards if he were old enough for unrestricted free agency, along with names like Brian Dumoulin, Matt Grzelcyk, Ryan Lindgren, and Nate Schmidt. He is, of course, younger than all of those options and, although he’s 26 years old, may still have a bit of room to grow into a steadier second-pairing piece. He’s projected to receive a two-year deal worth north of $2.6MM per season this summer, according to AFP Analytics. While that’s a tad prohibitive for the Golden Knights, who have bigger moves in mind, it won’t be a salary-cap hurdle for nearly every interested party.
The 6’6″ defender was Vegas’ own second-round pick in their inaugural 2017 draft class. Hague has spent his entire career in Nevada, almost exclusively as the left-shot option on their third pairing. Buried on the depth chart for years behind Brayden McNabb and now Noah Hanifin as well, his ice time took a small hit this year, averaging 17 minutes per game following three years of seeing 18-plus per game.
A steady 10-20 point producer, that’s not why teams are interested. He’s a good fringe second-pairing option with PK deployability, size, physicality, and historically strong possession metrics. ‘Historically’ is doing some heavy lifting there, though. His two-way play wasn’t particularly adept in 2024-25, at least at even strength. His -4.9% relative shot-attempt share was a career-low, especially considering he received rather even offensive and defensive zone deployment. His control of possession quality (expected goals) also fell below 50% at even strength for the first time in his six-year career.
There’s enough of a track record there for reasonable optimism surrounding a rebound, though. The Ontario native enters the summer with 83 points and a +20 rating in 364 career regular-season games, and he logged 18:34 per night in Vegas’ run to the 2023 Stanley Cup.
Perhaps no team among those mentioned needs a cost-effective player like Hague more than Detroit. Negative-value signings on defense over the past few years have hampered their ability to exit their rebuild, with aging names like Ben Chiarot and Justin Holl incapable of having success in anything above a third-pairing role. Hague, while untested in 20-plus minute deployment, would be a younger, cheaper, and better-skating option than any of those other supplemental pieces behind young core defenders Moritz Seider and Simon Edvinsson.
There’s also a clear need for Hague’s services in Pittsburgh. While the Penguins are under far less pressure to contend for a playoff spot in 2025-26 than the Red Wings, they simply need more defenders in the system to avoid overdeploying their younger prospects while also ideally having the flexibility to move on from Erik Karlsson and begin winding down Kris Letang‘s workload. The Pens need another pickup on top of just Hague to accomplish that, but he’d go a long way toward helping and would immediately become their top left-shot option ahead of a paper-thin group behind him.
Hague would see a more familiar depth role in Montreal if that’s where he ends up. His acquisition is less about shifting him into top-four deployment – Kaiden Guhle, Lane Hutson, and Mike Matheson are all lefties and have that covered. It would be more about flexing enforcer Arber Xhekaj into a No. 6/7 role while having Hague replace him as the everyday left-shot option on their third pairing.
Philadelphia Flyers Interested In Nicolas Hague
In his recent recurring segment on Sportsnet 590 The Fan, Elliotte Friedman has listed one suitor for Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Nicolas Hague should he be made available. Friedman believes that the Philadelphia Flyers have already indicated their interest in Hague to the Golden Knights.
The Flyers’ interest in Hague appears peculiar at first glance. Hague is only a year away from unrestricted free agency and would become the sixth left-handed defenseman on Philadelphia’s active roster.
No report has indicated that Vegas is looking to move Hague, only that there had been some interest in him. One would reasonably assume that any motivation the Golden Knights have for moving Hague would be their tight salary cap situation as they enter the summer months with only $9.6MM in flexibility according to PuckPedia.
Assuming that is Vegas’s motivation, there’s little chance they’d be open to acquiring any left-handed defenseman off the Flyers roster unless it was Emil Andrae, who’s set to make $903K in the 2025-26 season. Still, Philadelphia’s reported interest becomes clearer when looking at Hague’s defensive metrics throughout his time with the Golden Knights.
He’s never been much of a point-producer, scoring 20 goals and 83 points across 364 regular season games in Vegas, but has racked up 489 blocked shots and 572 hits in that span. Additionally, Hague owns a solid 49.7% CorsiFor% throughout his career, and a 90.9% on-ice save percentage at even strength.
If the Flyers are unable to improve their goaltending situation this summer, acquiring a player of Hague’s stature would help alleviate some of those issues. There’s no questioning Philadelphia’s poor goaltending from the 2024-25 season, and they weren’t a stellar possession team either.
Acquiring Hague would give them a responsible defender who has excelled at even strength and on the penalty kill. Still, it’s hard to imagine the Flyers carrying six left-handed defensemen on their roster next year, regardless of Hague’s implied value to the club.
Golden Knights Receiving Interest In Nicolas Hague
Nicolas Hague has been one of the longest-tenured Golden Knights players. He has spent the last six seasons with the team and was one of their first-ever draft picks back in 2017. But his time in Vegas might be coming to an end as David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports that the team has started to field calls about Hague in advance of his upcoming restricted free agency.
The 26-year-old has never been a big point producer at the NHL level as his career high in that regard is just 17, set back in 2020-21 and 2022-23. However, Hague has been a steady physical shutdown defender throughout his NHL career, a role he should be able to fill for several more years.
This past season, Hague played in 68 games for Vegas, picking up five goals and seven assists while averaging 17 minutes a night. He also chipped in with 74 blocked shots and 82 hits, numbers that were a fair bit below the 111 and 153, respectively, he had the year before.
Hague is entering his final year of restricted free agency and will have arbitration eligibility for the first time. His qualifying offer also checks in above his cap hit from the last three seasons at $2.7MM and it stands to reason he could push past $3MM on a one-year deal if he makes it to a hearing. Meanwhile, a longer-term pact could land closer to the $4MM range.
That’s an amount that the Golden Knights might not be able to afford. They presently have $9.6MM in cap room, per PuckPedia, but have several roster spots to fill with that money. Reilly Smith, Victor Olofsson, Brandon Saad, and Ilya Samsonov highlight the list of pending unrestricted free agents while Hague and Alexander Holtz are the notable restricted free agents. If Vegas wants to try to add a piece or two this summer, they’re going to have to go cheap to fill the other roster spots which could push Hague out, making his case one to keep an eye on over the next few weeks.
Robert Hagg Signs In SHL
May 29: Hagg is indeed heading to Brynas on a one-year deal, per a team announcement.
May 17: After seeing very limited NHL action this season, pending unrestricted free agent defenseman Robert Hagg is heading home. The blueliner confirmed to Expressen’s Gunnar Nordstrom that he will be playing in the SHL next season; SportBladet’s Hans Abrahamsson adds that Hagg is expected to sign a one-year deal with Brynas.
The 30-year-old signed a one-year deal with the Golden Knights last summer but he once again spent the bulk of the season in the minors with AHL Henderson where he had six goals and 21 assists in 54 games, his best offensive showing at that level. However, his improved play didn’t give Hagg much of an opportunity with Vegas as he suited up just twice with them in late November.
Having cleared waivers for two straight years now while then spending the bulk of those campaigns in the AHL, the writing is clearly on the wall for Hagg. He’s now viewed as more of a depth defender than someone that can be counted on to be a regular contributor in the NHL. Accordingly, at this stage of his career, heading back home makes a lot of sense.
If this winds up being the end of the road for Hagg in North America, he’ll finish up with 345 career NHL appearances over parts of nine seasons across six organizations although more than two-thirds of those outings were with the Flyers. Overall, Hagg has 63 points, 532 blocks, and 1,017 hits at the top level while logging 16:28 per game on average.
Trevor Connelly Selected In WHL Expansion Draft
- One of the Vegas Golden Knights’ top prospects is on the move in the WHL. The new Penticton Vees selected Trevor Connelly from the Spokane Chiefs in the WHL Expansion Draft and will own his rights for the foreseeable future. It won’t matter much, however. Connelly played for the NCAA’s Providence College last season before signing his entry-level contract on the first day of April. Since he will not be returning to the NCAA, it is highly unlikely that Connelly will move back to the Canadian major junior leagues anytime soon.
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- One of the Vegas Golden Knights’ top prospects is on the move in the WHL. The new Penticton Vees selected Trevor Connelly from the Spokane Chiefs in the WHL Expansion Draft and will own his rights for the foreseeable future. It won’t matter much, however. Connelly played for the NCAA’s Providence College last season before signing his entry-level contract on the first day of April. Since he will not be returning to the NCAA, it is highly unlikely that Connelly will move back to the Canadian major junior leagues anytime soon.
Golden Knights, Penguins Interested In Maxim Shabanov
Maxim Shabanov has been tabbed as one of the crown jewels of this summer’s international free agency period, although it appears he’s still in the courting stage of NHL offers and isn’t close to a deal. That’s because his season in Russia just recently ended with Traktor Chelyabinsk of the Kontinental Hockey League, who advanced to the Gagarin Cup Final but lost to Lokomotiv Yaroslavl. Today, Sergey Demidov of RG and NHL.com reports the Golden Knights and Penguins are two of the clubs that have “closely monitored” Shabanov throughout the season in hopes of landing him on an entry-level contract in the coming weeks.
There’s a natural fit for Shabanov, a 24-year-old right winger, in both organizations. The Golden Knights could use more cost-effective depth scoring with wingers Victor Olofsson, Tanner Pearson, Brandon Saad, and Reilly Smith all slated to become unrestricted free agents this summer. The Penguins, on the other hand, simply want to acquire younger, higher-upside talent to fill out their roster as they retool in the final stages of Sidney Crosby‘s and Evgeni Malkin‘s careers.
There are understandable concerns about Shabanov’s 5’8″, 157-lb frame that almost certainly makes him a winger at the NHL level despite being tested at center in Russia, but he’s coming off a spectacular season with Traktor. He led the team in scoring in the regular season with a 23-44–67 line in 65 games before leading the Gagarin Cup Playoffs with 10 goals and a +14 rating in 21 games.
The Penguins aren’t the only Metropolitan Division team that has an eye on Shabanov. After he got off to a hot start in the early weeks of the 2024-25 KHL season, the Islanders quickly displayed interest in his services, Ethan Sears of the New York Post said at the time. The Isles have had quite recent success with undrafted KHL pickups, hitting on one just last year with winger Maxim Tsyplakov. With a strong Russian presence on the Island in the form of Tsyplakov, Alexander Romanov, and Ilya Sorokin, there’s likely mutual appeal there for Shabanov as he adjusts to the NHL. He’d have Malkin in Pittsburgh, of course, and Pavel Dorofeyev in Vegas as well to help him with the transition.
Cap constraints likely won’t come into the picture, at least not immediately. Shabanov is only eligible for a one-year entry-level contract, so teams know they’ll have to reserve a chunk of change to re-up him in 2026-27 if he pans out for them next season.
Golden Knights Sign Tuomas Uronen To Entry-Level Contract
The Vegas Golden Knights have signed one of their lower-round selections from the 2023 NHL Draft. The Golden Knights announced they’ve signed forward Tuomas Uronen to a three-year, entry-level contract.
Vegas selected Uronen with the 192nd pick of the 2023 NHL Draft. At the time, he was playing for HIFK’s U20 program, but he quickly transferred to the Ontario Hockey League’s Ottawa 67’s after being drafted.
Despite having an extensive career in Finland’s junior leagues, Uronen only began making a name for himself in North America. Unfortunately, a lower-body injury limited him to 11 games during the 2023-24 season. Still, he made up for it in a major way with the Kingston Frontenacs this year.
Uronen scored 38 goals and 90 points in 63 games this year with a +28 rating, and another five goals and 13 points in 11 postseason contests. Internationally, Uronen scored two goals and three points in seven games for Team Finland during the 2024-25 U20 World Junior Championship.
Although it’s well known that the Golden Knights need more depth on the wing for next year’s roster, it’s more than likely Uronen will start the year with their AHL affiliate, the Henderson Silver Knights. Still, assuming Vegas remains tight to the cap next year, it would be unsurprising to see Uronen debut at some point during the 2025-26 campaign.
Injured Golden Knights Won't Require Surgery
The Golden Knights’ 2025 postseason came to a swift end in the second round at the hands of the Oilers. They were without winger Brandon Saad for most of that series and also had Mark Stone and Brayden McNabb carry injury designations at times, the former missing the series-clinching Game 5.
As for McNabb, the 34-year-old will get some needed recovery time after arguably the best season of his 13-year career. The shutdown defender recorded 20 points and played in all 82 games for the third straight season, leading the team and finishing second in the league with a +42 rating. He led Vegas with 167 blocks and led Knights defensemen with 131 hits.
William Karlsson And Jonas Rondbjerg To Play In World Championship
While the Golden Knights saw their playoff run come to an end when they were eliminated by Edmonton earlier this week, at least two of their players will see their season continue for at least a few more days. The team announced (Twitter link) that center William Karlsson will join Sweden and winger Jonas Rondbjerg will join Denmark for the rest of the World Championship.
Karlsson is coming off a particularly rough year, both in terms of injuries and from a production standpoint. The 32-year-old was limited to just nine goals and 20 assists in 53 games during the regular season. He produced at a similar rate in the playoffs, picking up three goals and three helpers in their 11 contests. With Sweden co-hosting the event this year, they have a strong roster and Karlsson will certainly give them a boost heading into the medal round.
As for Rondbjerg, he spent the bulk of the year with AHL Henderson but did get into 13 games with Vegas where he was held off the scoresheet. While he hasn’t been able to crack their lineup full-time, he has seen action with the Golden Knights for the last four years, spanning 76 games in total. Meanwhile, with the Silver Knights, the 26-year-old had 11 goals and 15 assists in 53 games. While pending free agents often don’t play in this event, Rondbjerg will be an exception as he’ll be eligible for Group Six unrestricted free agency this summer. He wasted little time flying over for the event as he scored today against Norway.
Earlier today, it was revealed that center Tomas Hertl had hoped to play for the Czechs but didn’t receive medical clearance from team doctors. It remains to be seen if any other Golden Knights will head over for the final half of the tournament with the medal round set to start on Thursday.
Hertl Not Cleared To Play At Worlds
- Czechia won’t be getting one of their top players for a late-tournament addition. Hokej.cz’s Jakub Ruc relays that Golden Knights forward Tomas Hertl did not receive medical clearance from the team to permit him to play the final few games of the event. Hertl suffered an upper-body injury late in the regular season and it’s unclear if that’s the injury that will hold him out or if it was something different altogether. After putting up 32 goals and 29 assists in 73 games this season, Hertl certainly would have been a big addition for the Czechs heading into the medal round.