Could Jonathan Marchessault Be On the Way Out?
Jeff Marek of Sportsnet joined SiriusXM NHL Network Radio with Scott Laughlin and Gord Stellick, and when asked about the Vegas Golden Knights and Jonathan Marchessault, Marek stated that GM Kelly McCrimmon will have tough decisions to make this summer.
** NHLRumors.com transcription
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Scott Laughlin: “I brought this up a little bit earlier, too, Jeff, but Vegas has decisions to make themselves, and they are not repeating his Cup champions. And that always hurts because that’s a team that’s been used to winning from the moment that they were born and what a remarkable story they were and continue to be. That being said they’ve got some decisions, and you wonder about Jonathan Marchessault in particular,
So here’s a 33-year-old guy who has been such a fan favourite and such a big part of that team on and off the ice. He’s 33. He could hit the market July 1, and he’s coming off a 42-goal season in which he played in every game, which is significant for a guy getting a little bit older. So, where does Vegas go? What do you think with Marchessault? Because this is a franchise in Vegas, as we’ve always acknowledged, right, Jeff that has no problem making some tough decisions asking some beloved player to go away.”
Jeff Marek: “And this will be a tough one as well. I mean, this is one of the original misfits. This is one of the most beloved players in the albeit brief history of the Vegas Golden Knights but you’re right there there’s no sentimentality here you know there’s there’s no loyalty. Look at the Marc-Andre Fleury thing because he thought that would bring us closer to the Stanley Cup and you know, ultimately they were proven right.
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I think the hang-up here is going to be term. I think that Kelly McCrimmon, even though, like you’re right, Jonathan Marchessault is still playing at the height of his powers, he has a tremendous season, continues to perform, continues to excel, but much like any team, you know, aging curves are real and when players fall off, they fall off quickly. And the drop can be sudden, and even though Jonathan Marchessault is still performing at a very, very high level, there’s no guarantee that’s going to continue if you signed a longer-term contract.
So I mean, we’re looking somewhere between I don’t know five to six to seven years. I don’t think he’s gonna get eight out of the Vegas Golden Knights year. I think that’s going to be the hang up here. I’m sure they’d love to have him back at not just the right price, but also the right term.
I also do wonder and I think we all do about Chandler Stephenson and by the way, on Marchessault, so should he hit the market, I mean, take your pick how many 25 teams would be interested in Jonathan Marchessault? So that could be something that we all follow on July 1.
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I think there’s a decision to make on Chandler Stephenson here as well. Are they going to be able to accommodate I mean, that’s one of the best trades George McPhee ever made. Yeah, help them win a Stanley Cup. I mean, there’s going to be decisions there William Carrier as well, who for the first time in may be the only time in his career is in a position now to really set himself up financially for life. So I wonder what happens there but you’re right, like there’s big decisions here for Kelly McCrimmon.
And the Vegas Golden Knights and like, look, this is what Vegas stuff like Vegas is the one team that has, I should say the one team but the most obvious team that discovered that, you know, during the season, you can mess up your salary cap as much as you want as long as you take the offseason and clean it up. That’s what Vegas does like you know what, we’re gonna mess this room up pretty good and it doesn’t matter because we’ll take the summer we’ll get a clean up or cap situation. We’re gonna break eggs along the way to make it omelet, and then in the summer, the cap situation is gonna get all cleared up.
This year has new wrinkles in it because there are emotional ties to players like Jonathan Marchessault. Tough decisions on Stephenson and Carrier, but you’re right this is a team that and I always use this as a compliment although there are people in Vegas that really don’t like when I say this, this is a team that is ruthless about winning.
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Feelings and emotions don’t get in the way of Kelly McCrimmon making decisions and that’s why they’re so successful. And that’s why we figure Vegas is gonna run something back next year that you know now has a side dish of annoyance. And this is a team that’s going to be pissed off that they didn’t add that they weren’t able to repeat.
And I think they’re going to take that frustration out on the league next summer, next year, rather, and they’re going to finally have a complete summer to rest up all their players.”
