While any business outside the organization is still up in the air, the Vegas Golden Knights have succeeded in getting all of their internal affairs in order.
On Monday, Golden Knights general manager Kelly McCrimmon confirmed that the team has agreed to terms with defenseman Lukas Cormier to a one-year contract.
The extension guarantees that the Golden Knights still have their restricted free agents under contract, also retaining the signing rights of forward Jakub Brabenec, who has signed to play with his hometown club of Brno in Czechia.
Cormier has spent the majority of his tenure with the Golden Knights organization with their AHL affiliate Henderson Silver Knights. Despite dealing with injuries, Cormier put together an impressive season with 47 points (eight goals, 39 assists) in 49 games. The offensive instincts also lead to the defenseman often serving as quarterback on the Henderson power play, which finished at an AHL-high 26 percent conversion rate.
Cormier has also appeared in two games with the Golden Knights, recording his first career NHL point against the New York Islanders in his debut on Jan. 4, 2024.
The only two-time winner of the Emile Bouchard Trophy for best defenseman in the QMJHL, Cormier has impressed since being a third-round pick of the Golden Knights of the 2020 NHL Draft. Now, with the five-foot-eleven defenseman back under contract and no longer exempt from waivers, he finds himself with an opportunity to crack the NHL roster.
The road back to Vegas, however, has gotten somewhat more difficult this offseason. The Golden Knights have re-signed all three of Rasmus Andersson, Jeremy Lauzon and Dylan Coghlan, as well as swapping defensemen with the Pittsburgh Penguins in a one-for-one deal between Kaedan Korczak and Parker Wotherspoon. Vegas also took a flier on a one-way deal with former first-round pick Ville Heinola, giving the Golden Knights eight defensemen that can reasonably wind up on the NHL roster when October rolls around.
At least one defender is going to have to start the season in Henderson and, while Cormier would make sense to bring back to the AHL, his success this past season could convince a team to scoop him up on waivers if they need more offensive production from their blue line.
With new Golden Knights head coach Ryan Craig knowing what Cormier is capable of, as well as what looks like plenty of competition for spots brewing in Vegas, the defenseman will be pushing this offseason to prove why he deserves to stick at the NHL level full-time.