Pietrangelo doesn’t rule out return to Golden Knights; hip injury in doubt

Alex Pietrangelo Considers Return to Action with the Golden Knights

Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Alex Pietrangelo is keeping the possibility of returning to competition this season open, as he continues his rehabilitation from a lingering hip injury. Pietrangelo, 35, and the Golden Knights announced in June that he would take a break from “the intensity of hockey” to see if his hip could improve to the point that Pietrangelo could have “a normal quality of life.” General Manager Kelly McCrimmon said at the time that the hip injury “would require bilateral reconstruction of the femur, with no guarantee of success.” Several reports indicated that Pietrangelo, the team’s number 1 defenseman, would miss at least the entire 2025-26 season. The defenseman himself said in June that “the probability is low that my body will recover to the standard required to play.” However, Pietrangelo stated on Monday that he has chosen not to undergo surgery, while continuing a rehabilitation program that has given him positive results so far. When asked if a return this season was ruled out, Pietrangelo did not rule it out.

Nothing is really concrete. I’m going to keep taking it day by day and see how it goes,” he said at the Golden Knights’ training camp.

Alex Pietrangelo

Pietrangelo explained that the hip problem started years ago, but that last season “was when it really took its toll on me.” Pietrangelo played despite this, skipping the 4 Nations Face-Off to focus on the Stanley Cup playoffs. He played 71 games in total and then another 10 games in the postseason, averaging 23:03 minutes of ice time in the playoffs for Vegas. A 17-year NHL veteran, Pietrangelo led the St. Louis Blues (2019) and the Vegas Golden Knights (2023) to Stanley Cup championships. He has 637 points in 1,087 career games. Pietrangelo has two years left on the 7-year contract he signed as a free agent with Vegas in 2020, with a cap hit of $8.8 million. The Golden Knights have limited cap space after acquiring star winger Mitch Marner from Toronto with a new contract that has a cap hit of $12 million. Vegas will begin the season with Pietrangelo on long-term injured reserve. The NHL and NHLPA recently agreed to streamline changes to the Collective Bargaining Agreement that address the salary cap benefits of players on LTIR and establish a postseason salary cap.