AP Photo/John Locher
Vegas Golden Knights center Brett Howden (21) celebrates after scoring during overtime of Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals Friday, May 19, 2023, in Las Vegas.
Wednesday, July 19, 2023 | 12:19 p.m.
The Golden Knights have signed restricted free agent forward Brett Howden to a two-year deal prior to his arbitration hearing, the team announced today.
Howden’s new deal carries an average annual value of $1.9 million, a $400,000 increase from the one-year deal he signed last summer.
The 25-year-old from Calgary, Alberta, was set to have an arbitration hearing on his new contract on Monday, but the two sides agreed to the deal before allowing a third party to get involved. Howden’s deal will take him to his age 27 season, where he will be eligible for unrestricted free agency.
The Golden Knights acquired Howden in a trade with the New York Rangers in July 2021. The 27th overall pick from the 2016 NHL Draft had just 49 points in 178 games in his first three NHL seasons.
He’s since found a home with the Golden Knights with 33 points (15 goals, 18 assists) in 101 games in two seasons. Howden had 10 points (five goals, five assists) during Vegas’ run to winning the Stanley Cup and was a worthy complement on the third line with Chandler Stephenson and Mark Stone.
Howden’s new deal brings the Golden Knights to $3.3 million over the salary cap of $83.5 million. That doesn’t account for the expected move of placing goalie Robin Lehner on long-term injured reserve, which would free up $5 million in cap relief.
That would put the Golden Knights at approximately $1.7 million in available space to 12 forwards, eight defensemen and two goalies.
Rookie forward Pavel Dorofeyev is the final RFA in need of a new contract.
Danny Webster can be reached at 702-259-8814 or [email protected]. Follow Danny on Twitter at twitter.com/DannyWebster21.
