Golden Knights have big decision to make on ‘warrior’ free agent Alec Martinez

By Justin Emerson

Wednesday, June 30, 2021 | 2 a.m.

If there were any questions about the extent Alec Martinez was willing to go to win this postseason, they were answered in his postgame exit interviews last weekend.

The Golden Knights defenseman revealed he played the entire postseason on a broken foot. His absence in practices throughout the playoffs indicated some sort of injury, but nothing was apparent from watching him play as he led all players in blocks during Vegas’ three rounds in the tournament.

There’s a reason his teammates called him a “warrior” all season despite him despising the nickname.

Martinez has become a dependable presence and beloved teammate in less than two full seasons in Vegas, but now the Golden Knights face a tough decision as it pertains to him. He’s an unrestricted free agent, and for a team tight up against the salary cap, it’s going to be tough to keep a player like Martinez who’s due for a raise.

He’ll also turn 34 years old before the start of next season, so Vegas must also assess if and how he’ll fit long-term.

“To be quite honest I haven’t really thought about it that much,” Martinez said of his free agency. “I’m obviously aware I am a UFA (unrestricted free agent). Obviously the loss is pretty fresh, just a couple days ago. I don’t really know yet. We’ll see what happens.”

There’s no question now that his $4 million cap hit and the two second-picks the Golden Knights shipped to the Kings to acquire him last year ended up being a bargain price, which wasn’t the overwhelming thought when the trade went down. Martinez solidified the top four of the Golden Knights blue line, pairing with Shea Theodore last season before shifting to the top pair with Alex Pietrangelo this season.

After adjusting numbers to a per-game basis because of the pandemic-shortened season, Martinez put up career highs in goals (9), assists (23) and points (32) this season. He was the only Golden Knights’ defenseman with a power-play goal in the regular season, and the only one regardless of position to score one in the postseason.

He was also second among Vegas defenseman to Theodore with 8.3 goals above replacement, according to Evolving Hockey’s analytical model.

There’s a good argument to be made that he was Vegas’ most consistent defenseman from the start of the season to the end — even while playing on one healthy foot.

“Alec had a great year, really since we acquired him at the trade deadline a year ago, he’s been a great addition,” general manager Kelly McCrimmon said. “His offensive production this year was very high-end. He was, many nights, our best defenseman.”

His asking price might ultimately be the deciding factor on whether he returns. Coming off one of his best seasons, a salary as high as $6 million per year would be within reason. That price tag would be tight for Vegas, but not unmanageable.

The Golden Knights project to have about $6 million in cap space before making decisions on free agent forwards Tomas Nosek and Mattias Janmark. The Golden Knights could, therefore, afford to give Martinez a raise and bring back close to the same team that reached the Stanley Cup semifinals but it would leave them with little space for improving elsewhere.

That’s assuming they don’t go other routes to create additional cap space such as moving one of their goalies or high-priced forwards. If Vegas is more open to a personnel makeover, it could both sign Martinez and upgrade other parts of the roster.

The Golden Knights are unlikely going to want to extend Martinez a longer-term offer because of his age, but neither are other teams.

It may all come down to how determined Vegas is to keep Martinez. He’s undoubtedly one of the most important roster decisions of the summer.

The team’s decision on Martinez will dictate a host of other moves. Whether he comes back or signs somewhere else will be determined over the next month, but either way, it’s clear how much the organization has valued having him around during two trips to the Stanley Cup playoff semifinals.

“I can’t understate the importance of him to our group here the time he’s been there with me,” coach Pete DeBoer said. “He rises to the occasion at the tough moments, and you can never have enough guys like that.”