Golden Knights Veteran Center Could Be Available In Trades; No Indications Quite Yet

Vegas Golden Knights center William Karlsson (71) celebrates after scoring a goal against the Seattle Kraken during the second period at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

William Karlsson's name has been floated out by many insiders, and although no concrete reports have come from the Vegas Golden Knights, a trusted insider revealed fresh information.

Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman revealed on his podcast, 32 Thoughts, that "All I'm going to say is that I got pushback from teams about Karlsson," Friedman said. "Now, I haven't spoken to Vegas directly, and it's always possible... I asked a few people about Karlsson, and either they told me they're not under the impression he's available, or, I suspect, in at least one or two cases, they asked and were told no."

"I asked around about Karlsson, and just the people I spoke to, they told me they had either no indication Vegas was willing to do it, or had been specifically told Vegas wasn't doing it. So if Karlsson's available, and I stress if... you'd have to show me what the situation would be."

HC Bruce Cassidy trusts Karlsson quite a bit, and it would take a lot of convincing from GM Kelly McCrimmon to convince him that moving him is the right move. Karlsson is trusted defensively at even strength and on the penalty kill, and chips in offensively when needed. Several reports have indicated that the Golden Knights are going to make a strong push for Mitch Marner, and they would need to free up cap space to do so.

Karlsson's $5.9M cap hit would do so, and he could fetch a very strong return in a market that craves two-way centermen.

Marner is a winger but is regarded as one of the best pure playmakers in the NHL. He is also one of the best defensive wingers, with the ability to shut down the opponent's top line and kill penalties.

With several reports stemming from numerous insiders on multiple players, the Golden Knights could be in line to be very busy this offseason.

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