Jonathan Marchessault finally vents about Vegas’ deceit

The Vegas Golden Knights and Jonathan Marchessault went their separate ways on the opening day of free agency when the star forward signed a five-year, $27.5 million contract with the Nashville Predators.

Marchessault had been one of the original misfits in Vegas, who took a chance on him in the 2017 expansion draft and he had expressed his desire to remain a Golden Knight.

On Monday, as a guest on the Cam and Strick Podcast, Marchessault revealed what happened.

“In Vegas, I called the GM (Kelly McCrimmon) on Friday, I called the president (George McPhee) on Saturday, I’m like, ‘What’s going on, what do you guys want to do? I need to know, are you guys actually letting me go for real?’ Then, when Sunday showed up, nothing was budging,” Marchessault said.

He also explained how he was asking for a four-year contract but the Golden Knights were offering three, which ended with the two camps parting ways.

It felt like everyone was expecting for Vegas to re-sign Marchessault, who is the franchise’s all-time leader in goals and points, and won the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2023, leading the Golden Knights to a Stanley Cup victory.

It was not the first time the Golden Knights dealt with star players in questionable manners. Let’s not forget how fan-favourite players like Marc-Andre Fleury, Nate Schmidt, Alex Tuch and Reilly Smith were simply traded away, some without a decent return.

This prompted Marchessault to open up about the team’s lack of loyalty, which is hard to deal with as a player.

“There’s definitely no loyalty but, at the same time, you’re there to win. I don’t mind that mindset, personally,” Marchessault said. “Obviously, I’m disappointed that I left. I didn’t have any real things to consider and that’s what disappointed me. I thought I had done good enough in the past seven years for them that I could deserve what I deserved. I was not asking for something outrageous, I was not trying to steal the bank or anything.

“But it’s life and you move on, and they’re still going to have a really good team … and only the future will tell us if they were right or wrong.”

Upon signing in Nashville, Marchessault commented that he felt the Golden Knights didn’t want to keep him. While Vegas general manager Kelly McCrimmon said that “couldn’t be further from the truth”, actions spoke louder than words.

Marchessault scored a career-high 42 goals last season and has proven he still has a lot to offer. He will get to do so now with the Predators, who loaded up on Free Agency Day, signing longtime Tampa Bay Lightning captain Steven Stamkos to a four-year, $32 million contract and pried defenseman Brady Skjei out of Carolina with a seven-year, $49 million deal.