Vegas Golden Knights Add Veteran Forward

Tanner Pearson Signed by Golden Knights

Pearson has played for the Los Angeles Kings, Pittsburgh Penguins, Vancouver Canucks and the Montreal Canadiens over his 11-year NHL career. Last season, he netted five goals and eight assists for 13 points in 54 games with Montreal.

The 32-year-old has 138 goals and 147 assists for 285 points in 644 career games. Los Angeles originally drafted him in the first round, 30th overall in the 2012 NHL Draft.

His best season was with the Kings in the 2016-17 season when he notched a career-high 24 goals and 44 points. The Kitchener, Ontario native won a Stanley Cup in Los Angeles in the 2013-14 campaign.

Pearson did represent his native Canada, but that was back in 2012. He helped Canada win a bronze medal at the 2012 IIHF World Junior Championships. Pearson was the first member of Team Canada since 2005 to play for the team after being passed over in the NHL draft

What It Means

His production has gone down in the last few seasons. However, Pearson can still be useful in a number of ways. He can help out on the bottom-part of the lineup for the Golden Knights.

Some think that preseason is meaningless. However, Pearson has taken advantage of his opportunity this exhibition slate. The veteran winger has two goals and an assist and has earned praise from head coach Bruce Cassidy.

Pearson may not be able to sustain that sort of production throughout the season. However, he will be an important part of the Golden Knights’ lineup. He also comes in at a bargain price of $775.000. The veteran forward could be a steal for general manager Kelly McCrimmon.