Golden Knights sign veteran defenseman to multiyear extension in important move for franchise

The Golden Knights have kept defenseman Brayden McNabb off next year’s unrestricted free-agent market. The team announced that it signed him to a three-year contract worth $3.65M annually. 

It’s the second time in as many months that Vegas announced a fresh contract for a member of the franchise’s inaugural blue line back in the 2017-18 season. Shea Theodore inked a seven-year, $51.975M deal just over three weeks ago.

McNabb’s extension wasn't nearly as rich or as long, but it’s still an important bit of business for a franchise looking to extend what’s been a nonstop championship contention window since they entered the league. His 518 games played for the Knights are a franchise record, passing Jonathan Marchessault earlier this month. His +104 rating is second in franchise history to William Karlsson and his 300 PIMs are the most, as are his 1,256 hits and 1,144 blocks.

McNabb and Theodore have been regular defense partners since the Knights traded away Nate Schmidt and signed Alex Pietrangelo in the 2020 offseason. The 33-year-old left-shot defender has averaged 19:42 per game since arriving in Sin City in 2017, compiling 22 goals and 89 assists for 111 points.

The 6-foot-4, 215-pound defender has continued to serve in a top-four capacity this season, especially with Nicolas Hague spending about half the season on the shelf with lower-body and undisclosed injuries. Through 16 games, he has two points and leads the club with a +11 rating despite a pedestrian 46.2% share of shot attempts at even strength. Per usual, his 36 blocked shots lead the team, while his 28 hits lead Vegas defensemen.

This is the third contract for McNabb, represented by O2K Management’s Dean Grillo, signs with the Knights. He signed a four-year, $10M extension early on in Vegas’ inaugural season after being plucked from the Kings in the expansion draft before inking a three-year, $8.55M deal a few months before his previous extension was set to expire in 2022.

His previous deals with the Golden Knights have carried cap hits of $2.5M and $2.85M, respectively. 

It’s fair to wonder what McNabb’s extension means for Hague’s future in Nevada. The 25-year-old, who was a second-round pick in Vegas’ inaugural 2017 draft class, is a restricted free agent next summer with arbitration rights and is due a $2.7M qualifying offer. That’s reasonable for his services, but with McNabb in tow, the Golden Knights now already have seven defensemen signed to one-way contracts for 2025-26, including depth options Ben Hutton and Kaedan Korczak. Hague is the only defenseman on the active roster without a contract past this season.