NHL Rumors: Golden Knights heat up Mitch Marner pursuit as they look to open up cap space by trading $65,100,000 star

The Vegas Golden Knights have everyone believing they are going to make some serious noise in the coming days and weeks.

A disappointing five-game series loss to the Edmonton Oilers in Round 2 left a bad taste in their mouth, providing them with a much longer summer than anticipated.

Vegas has been one of the most active teams in the NHL since entering the league, and many expect more of the same this offseason after such a disappointing exit. The Golden Knights have been heavily linked to star UFA Mitch Marner, and one way they could create more flexibility to sign him is by trading star forward Tomas Hertl.

Reports emerged on Tuesday that Hertl might be headed to Carolina; however, Marc D'Amico of RG Media believes other teams remain in play. Here was the latest update he had to share on X (formerly Twitter).

"Getting some pushback on the Canes being the destination at this time, so pour some cold water on that one. However, being told that the trade talks re: Tomas Hertl are ongoing as Vegas looks to free up space to take a run at Marner," D'Amico said.

Hertl has five years remaining on the eight-year, $65,100,000 contract extension he originally signed with the San Jose Sharks in 2022.

The Golden Knights could trade Tomas Hertl by the end of the week

According to Marc D'Amico, a Tomas Hertl trade out of Vegas appears to be pretty imminent.

With the start of free agency just one week away, the Golden Knights don't have much time to clear cap space in an attempt to sign Mitch Marner. Therefore, any move to shed salary will have to come sooner rather than later.

Here was another update D'Amico provided on Tuesday on X.

"Belief is that he will be traded by Saturday, but still work to be done with the right fit and the full NMC," D'Amico wrote.

It certainly appears that after just 79 total games with the Golden Knights, Tomas Hertl could already be finding a new home. Where the 31-year-old gets traded remains to be seen, as D'Amico mentioned he holds all the cards with a full no-movement clause.

This will be a situation to follow in the coming days as Vegas does whatever it can to better position itself to land Mitch Marner in free agency.