Wilfredo Lee/AP
Washington Capitals right wing Anthony Mantha warms up before the start of an NHL hockey game against the Florida Panthers, Saturday, Feb. 24, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla.
Published Tuesday, March 5, 2024 | 3:38 p.m.
Updated Tuesday, March 5, 2024 | 4:13 p.m.
The Golden Knights were expected to be busy before Friday's trade deadline. The first move has been made.
Vegas has acquired 6-foot-5 forward Anthony Mantha from the Washington Capitals in exchange for this year's second-round pick and a fourth-round pick in 2026. TSN was the first to report the trade.
It took two draft picks for the Golden Knights to acquire the 20th overall pick from the 2013 NHL Draft.
Mantha, 29, has played 476 games in his NHL career starting with the Detroit Red Wings, then the last three-plus seasons with Washington.
The power forward, who has 20 goals this season while on a Washington team that's seven points back of a playoff spot, is in the final year of a four-year contract with a cap hit of $5.7 million.
Washington is retaining 50% of Mantha's cap hit, meaning the Golden Knights are responsible for $2.85 million.
The importance of the Capitals taking back half of Mantha's salary means the Golden Knights still have room to add more prior to noon PT on Friday. With captain Mark Stone moving to long-term injured reserve, and now the addition of Mantha, Vegas has approximately $4.4 million in LTIR relief.
Forward William Carrier, who has not played since Jan. 4 and underwent surgery for an upper-body injury on Jan. 10, is not on LTIR but could be moved should more space be needed.
That space could be used to acquire the top trade target available, Pittsburgh forward Jake Guentzel. The Golden Knights are reportedly one of the favorites to land the two-time 40-goal scorer.
Danny Webster can be reached at 702-259-8814 or [email protected]. Follow Danny on X at twitter.com/DannyWebster21.
