Alex Pietrangelo out indefinitely due to illness in the family

The Vegas Golden Knights announced Alex Pietrangelo is away from the team and will remain so indefinitely due to an illness in his family.

No further details were provided by the team and they ask that the Pietrangelo family’s privacy be respected at this time. It is unknown how long the veteran defenceman will be away from his team.

This isn’t the first time a family member of Alex Pietrangelo contracted an illness. In 2018, his niece was diagnosed with Wilms’ tumor, ultimately winning the battle against the illness. Since then, Pietrangelo has done charity work with the Friends of Kids with Cancer to raise awareness and raise funds for the organization.

The Golden Knights alternate captain has played 23 games this year, scoring 21 points in that span. He was on track to blow past his 2021-22 totals of 13 goals and 44 points. Despite missing four games, the King City, Ontario native ranks second among Golden Knights players in points, behind only Jack Eichel.

The Golden Knights will miss Pietrangelo’s presence on the ice as one of the most effective defencemen in the NHL. Pietrangelo is in the third year of the seven year $61.6 million contract he signed with Vegas in the 2020 offseason.

Pietrangelo played a huge part in the Golden Knights resurgence early this season. They currently rank third in the NHL, with 39 points in 27 games.

The 32-year-old defenceman has played 902 games in the NHL for the Vegas Golden Knights and St. Louis Blues. He scored 132 goals and 538 points and was a member of the 2018-19 St. Louis Blues Stanley Cup championship team.

It will be interesting to see how the Golden Knights respond to his absence. The burden will fall on Shea Theodore, Alec Martinez, Brayden McNabb, and Zach Whitecloud to carry the load on defence.