Vegas trades defenseman Weber to Coyotes

The Vegas Golden Knights offloaded defenseman Shea Weber‘s contract to the Arizona Coyotes on Wednesday, 10 days before the NHL trade deadline.

Vegas traded Weber and a 2023 fifth-round draft pick to Arizona for defenseman Dysin Mayo, 26, an AHL defenseman who was assigned to the Golden Knights’ minor league affiliate in Henderson.

Weber has been on long-term injured reserve for the Golden Knights since they acquired him in June 2022 from the Montreal Canadiens for winger Evgenii Dadonov. Weber’s last appearance in an NHL game was July 2021, in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Tampa Bay Lightning. He missed the entire 2021-22 season with multiple injuries, and the Canadiens said at the time that his career was likely over.

Weber’s contract runs through 2025-26, as part of a 14-year deal with the Nashville Predators in 2012. He makes $7,857,143 against the NHL salary cap but is due only $3 million in actual salary over the next three seasons.

The move addresses potential salary cap issues for the Golden Knights in the offseason.

For the Coyotes, the move adds another draft pick to their substantial collection, with seven picks in the first five rounds this summer. The move could also be insurance that they can remain over the NHL salary cap floor of $61 million after the trade deadline. According to Cap Friendly, Arizona has a team cap hit of $66,459,719. Defensemen Jakob Chychrun ($4.6 million average annual value) and Shayne Gostisbehere ($4.5 million AAV) are among the players who could be moved ahead of the deadline.