As announced rather inconspicuously on their TikTok, the Vegas Golden Knights have signed restricted free agent forward Nicolas Roy to a five-year extension. The Athletic’s Jesse Granger reports the contract carries an average annual value of $3MM. PuckPedia reports the full contract breakdown is as follows:
2022-23: $3.5MM
2023-24: $3.5MM
2024-25: $3MM
2024-25: $2.5MM
2025-26: $2.5MM
The 25-year-old Roy had a career year in 2021-22, cementing his place as a full-time NHLer. Originally a fourth-round pick of the Carolina Hurricanes in 2015, Roy played just seven games with the franchise before he was traded to the Golden Knights in 2019 in exchange for Erik Haula.
Roy’s career year saw him set career highs in games played (78), goals (15), assists (24), points (39), and average time on ice (16:15). He’s certainly stronger defensively on the penalty kill than he is at even strength, but Roy manages to create a lot of offense for him and his teammates when he’s on the ice. It seems like a fair deal for a player who could easily continue to develop more as he’s a season or two away from his prime.
With defenseman Nicolas Hague still in need of a new contract, the Golden Knights are pushing dangerously close to their salary cap limit, even with Shea Weber on long-term injured reserve. After Roy’s signing, CapFriendly projects Vegas with roughly -$5.8MM in cap space, roughly just $2MM away from the maximum potential relief of Weber’s contract.