Vegas Inks Theodore to Seven-Year Deal
The Vegas Golden Knights announced the signing of restricted free-agent Shea Theodore to a seven-year deal worth $36.4 million. The 23-year-old held out of training camp but is expected to be ready for the Golden Knights’ first regular season game on October 4 against the Philadelphia Flyers.
“[Theodore’s agents] were more interested in going shorter and we wanted to longer,” said McPhee. “It helps us manage the cap better.” In the end, McPhee opted to up the average annual value of the deal to secure the young defenseman long term. McPhee acknowledged the signing leaves Vegas with nine defensemen on the roster. He said the team will have to cut one of Erik Brannstrom or Jake Bischoff in the next few days.
The deal also includes a partial no-trade clause. In years six and seven of the contract, Theodore can submit a list of five teams that he cannot be traded to.
Theodore registered six goals and 23 assists in 61 games last season. He was drafted No. 26 overall in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft by the Anaheim Ducks and was traded to Vegas last off-season. Theodore has 46 points in 114 career NHL games split between the Ducks and Golden Knights. His new contract and the 20-game suspension of Nate Schmidt suggest a bump in ice time for Theodore to start the 2018-19 season.