Golden Knights now “aggressively shopping” Marchessault and two other veterans on trade market

Earlier this week TSN's Frank Seravalli reported that the Vegas Golden Knights have “doubled down in recent days and weeks in an attempt to move” star forward Max Pacioretty in order to get out from under the $21 million still owed to him. It's worth noting that Pacioretty's contract has a limited no-trade clause and still has three years remaining with a $7 million per season salary cap hit.

Having said all that, Pacioretty is still a valuable player and there should be at least a few times with trade interest. After all, the 32 year old forward put up 32 goals and 66 points in 71 games last season.

Now though, Golden Knights insider Jesse Granger reports that not only is the team trying to trade Pacioretty, but they've also had discussions involving veterans Jonathan Marchessault and Marc Andre Fleury.

From Granger's most recent column from The Athletic:

TSN’s Frank Seravalli was the first to report that the team has attempted to move Max Pacioretty and sources confirmed to The Athletic that the Golden Knights have indeed spoken to teams about possibly moving Pacioretty and his $7 million cap hit, as well as veterans Jonathan Marchessault and Marc-Andre Fleury.

While it's no surprise that the Golden Knights have been trying to move Fleury and his $7 million annual cap hit for awhile now, this is the first time Marchessault's name has been thrown around in trade talks. What's even more surprising is that Granger reports that one source told him the Golden Knights are “aggressively shopping” both Pacioretty and Marchessault. The 29 year old Marchessault carries a $5 million cap hit for the next four seasons and put up an impressive 22 goals and 47 points in 66 games for the Golden Knights last season. He's just two years removed from a break out 75 point campaign during the Golden Knights' inaugural season. Suffice it to say that he, like Pacioretty, carries some significant value.

I'm not sure the same could be said for Fleury though. While he's certainly a capable NHL goaltender and an absolute fan favourite, he's simply not the surefire #1 goalie that he used to be. And now with Robin Lehner inked long-term, it appears that the writing is on the wall for the man they call "Flower".