In Marner, Vegas will add one of many league’s premier playmakers to its already high-end offense. Since debuting for the Maple Leafs within the 2016-17 season, Marner has scored 221 targets and 741 factors in 657 video games, averaging 20:03 of ice time per evening. Other than his offensive capabilities, Marner is phenomenal on the defensive puck, incomes a +128 score with a profession 52.7% CorsiFor% at even power and a 90.1% on-ice save share at even power.
By re-signing Brandon Saad and Reilly Smith over the previous two days, and including Marner Monday, the Golden Knights have fully addressed their want for high quality wingers earlier than unrestricted free company has even opened. Moreover, with $2M remaining in wage cap area, Vegas has some flexibility so as to add towards the underside of its lineup, or to shore up its defensive core with cheaper offers.
Marner’s addition reaffirms the adage of the ’wealthy changing into richer’. The Golden Knights completed the 2024-25 marketing campaign with the fifth-best targets scored common (3.34), third-best targets in opposition to common (2.61), second-best powerplay (28.34%), Thirteenth-best taking pictures share (11.0%), ninth-best CorsiFor% (51.8%) and Eleventh-best in high-danger scoring possibilities (51.9%). Curiously sufficient, regardless of being identified for his offensive abilities, Marner could assist Vegas probably the most on the penalty kill, because it completed this previous season ranked twenty sixth with a 75.74% kill fee.
When it comes to the wage cap, this deal is just possible to enhance for the Golden Knights. Marner will earn 12.57% of Vegas’ obtainable wage cap subsequent 12 months whereas watching that share drop to 10.57% in solely two years. Contemplating that they’ll want a brand new contract for Eichel after subsequent season, Vegas needs to be in good condition to retain each for the foreseeable future.
Sadly, Marner does carry some baggage in the case of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Just like the Maple Leafs, the Golden Knights are firmly inside their aggressive window and have been competing for the Stanley Cup since changing into a group lower than a decade in the past. Though he gained’t take care of an analogous media panorama in Vegas, Marner can have comparable expectations relating to his postseason performances.
In equity to Marner, he’s been a high quality postseason participant, simply to not his customary. Throughout his time in Toronto, Marner scored 13 targets and 63 factors in 70 playoff video games, attaining a +9 score. Though this is able to be considered as high quality manufacturing for many gamers, it’s a 0.22 drop-off in point-per-game common in comparison with his regular-season output. Now cemented in Vegas for the prime years of his profession, Marner will solely have so many extra possibilities to right the model of himself as a participant when hockey turns into as vital because it ever can.
In the meantime, the Maple Leafs have achieved effectively by turning nothing into one thing. The probability of Marner staying in Toronto has been identified for a number of weeks, and the Maple Leafs have made certain to get one other asset in return relatively than lose him for nothing. Not like Marner, the participant they’re buying from the Golden Knights has appreciable postseason expertise.
