The Vegas Golden Knights lost many players to unrestricted free agency. But two names might sting more than expected. Who are these mystery players?

Turnover isn’t a surprising thing in the NHL. In the salary cap era, teams can’t up the checkbook and retain players without losing other names. Spending freely was a regular concept back in 1990s and early 2000s, where teams like the Detroit Red Wings and Colorado Avalanche would get big names with blank checks. Imagine how disappointed Kelly McCrimmon felt when he entered the league at the wrong time period.

That darn salary cap was how the Vegas Golden Knights lost all six unrestricted free agents (non-G6 rights) this summer, with even a beloved “Original Misfit” leaving. He was the franchise leader in almost every statistical category known to man, whether it was points or goals scored. But two other names will also be missed.

In fact, one of these names is also an “Original Misfit,” coming from the Buffalo Sabres in the 2017 Expansion Draft. The loss already hurts an OG Golden Knights fan who’s been with the team since day one. But what about the other player? He was a diamond in the rough, adding lower-line scoring for Vegas during his tenure. Let’s see who these underrated stars are that the Golden Knights will miss.

Why the Vegas Golden Knights will miss Michael Amadio and William Carrier

William Carrier was a hard-hitting center on the fourth line, forming a punishing forward group with Ryan Reaves and, eventually, Keegan Kolesar. He compiled 1,116 hits throughout his seven-year Vegas Golden Knights career, making him a tough player. Of course, there were times when he showed offensive prowess, even scoring a career-high 16 goals in 2022-23.

Sadly, he would’ve had a bigger impact on Vegas if he stayed healthy. The newest Carolina Hurricanes forward dealt with upper-body injuries during his Golden Knights tenure, leaving the team without much of that physical presence. Still, they’ll enter the season with less bite than 2023-24, leaving themselves vulnerable.

Meanwhile, Michael Amadio provided lower-line scoring for the Golden Knights. The Ottawa Senators will get a player who scored 41 goals and 31 assists in three seasons with Vegas, including four power play goals and three power play assists. On top of that, he was an underrated playoff performer, scoring six goals and seven assists in 21 Stanley Cup Playoff games.

But there’s more to his game than simply scoring goals. He was also an accurate shooter, with 33 shots on goal missing the net last season (117 total shots on goal last season). Although he was a low-danger goal-scorer, he still got dirty and dug after the puck. Add Amadio shooting above his scoring talent in his first two seasons with Vegas (4.7 goals above shooting talent in 2022 and five in 2021) and Kelly McCrimmon found a diamond in the rough with this waiver pickup. Sadly, that shooting talent will head to Ottawa to help the Senators reach the playoffs.