Noah Hanifin, who was brought in during the trade deadline to strengthen the Golden Knights’ defense, agreed to stay with the team for eight more years. His new contract is worth an average of $7.35 million per year.
Since joining the Knights, Hanifin has played 16 games, scoring two goals and assisting seven times. He was traded from the Flames to Vegas on March 6.
Between his time in Calgary and now with Vegas, he has accumulated 44 points in 77 games, which is just four points shy of his career-best two years ago.
Hanifin quickly adapted to his new team and was placed on the Knights’ top defensive pairing.
The Knights won the Stanley Cup last year, mainly due to the strong performance of all their defensive pairings. However, injuries, illness, and inconsistent play have made this season more uncertain.
By extending Hanifin’s contract, the Knights might be indicating that they could let go of one or two of their veteran defensemen after this season due to salary cap limitations.
Before the trade deadline, the Knights were active, adding Tomas Hertl from the San Jose Sharks and Anthony Mantha from the Washington Capitals.
With four games left in the season, all at home, the Knights are currently the second wild card in the Western Conference. They are also just one point behind the Los Angeles Kings for the third spot in the Pacific Division.
