The Vegas Golden Knights announced 32-year-old Tanner Pearson will be attending training camp on a PTO
The Vegas Golden have another potential middle-six forward in the fold. GM Kelly McCrimmon announced today that the team has signed veteran forward Tanner Pearson to a PTO.
Pearson, 32, played last season for the Montreal Canadiens, appearing in 54 games for the Habs. Pearson scored 5 goals and 8 assists for 13 points.
While Pearson at this stage in his career is more of a middle-six player, at one point he was power forward capable of scoring 20+ goals. Pearson played 25 games for the Los Angeles Kings in 2014, winning the Stanley Cup. But it was in 2015-2016 when he became an everyday player at the NHL level. Pearson scored 15 goals for the Kings that season and followed it up with an impressive 24 goal and 44 point season in 2017.
After taking a brief stop in Pittsburgh after being traded there during the 2018-2019 season, Pearson was once again traded that season, this time to the Vancouver Canucks. Pearson would go on to have a career year in 2019-2020 for the Canucks, scoring 21 goals and 45 points in only 69 games played.
There are no guarantees that Pearson will turn this PTO into a contract for this coming year but there is a chance that Pearson could be a fit on the Golden Knight's 4th line. A 4th line of Pearson-Laczynski-Kolesar could be a line that creates energy with physicality and the ability to chip in a little bit offensively.
Pearson was drafted 30th overall in the 1st round in the 2012 NHL draft. In 644 career games split between LA, Vancouver, Pittsburgh and Montreal, Pearson has totaled 138 goals, 147 assists and 285 points.