Vegas Golden Knights place Alec Martinez on injured reserve

The Vegas Golden Knights have announced that they have placed defenseman Alec Martinez on injured reserve with an undisclosed injury.

Martinez last played on March 4th in Vegas’ 6-3 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. He had 17:22 minutes of ice time and three shots on goal.

This season, the 36-year-old has recorded four goals and 12 assists for 16 points in 45 games. Vegas acquired Martinez from the Los Angeles Kings in 2019-20; since joining the Golden Knights, Martinez has appeared in 202 games, scoring 21 goals and 52 assists for 73 points.

Martinez is in the final year of a three-year, $15,750,000 contract he signed under Vegas GM Kelly McCrimmon. The contract pays him an average annual value (AAV) of $5,250,000. He will become an unrestricted free agent on July 1.

The Rochester Hills, Michigan product was originally selected by the Kings No. 95 overall in the 2007 NHL Draft. He is a two-time Stanley Cup champion with the Kings and scored the cup-clinching goal in double overtime in 2014. Martinez went on to play 597 games, scoring 62 goals, and 136 assists for 198 points during his time in L.A. Martinez later added a third Stanley Cup ring to his arsenal when he won the Cup with the Golden Knights last season.

Martinez’s injury adds to an accumulation of Vegas injuries already that include captain Mark Stone being placed on long-term injured reserve just the other day, and Tobias Bjornfot currently on injured reserve for an undisclosed injury, while Brett Howden, William Carrier and Pavel Dorofeyev are all out, as well.

The Golden Knights face off against the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday, one day prior to the 2024 NHL trade deadline. With Vegas recently acquiring Anthony Mantha, questions remain whether the Golden Knights add another player or not.