The Vegas Golden Knights will be looking for a rebound after their disastrous last outing, and they could have a valuable reinforcement when they visit the Vancouver Canucks on Monday.
As the Golden Knights (42-26-8, 92 points) return to action for the first time since their stunning loss to the Arizona Coyotes on Friday, it appears they will do so with Tomas Hertl in the lineup for the first time since he was acquired from the San Jose Sharks at the trade deadline one month ago.
“Probably will play,” coach Bruce Cassidy said after Sunday’s practice. “We’ll finalize that (Monday).”
Hertl, who has not played since suffering a knee injury in late January, collected 15 goals and 34 points in 48 games with the Sharks before being traded. He practiced on a line with Chandler Stephenson and Michael Amadio.
Vegas is sitting in a Western Conference wild-card position, one point back of the Los Angeles Kings for third place in the Pacific Division and with a game in hand.
The Golden Knights will push to rebound from arguably the worst collapse in franchise history. They saw their three-game winning streak snapped with a shocking 7-4 loss to the Coyotes, in which they held a 4-1 lead with 12 minutes remaining before surrendering six unanswered goals.
“We’ve got to find a way to not collapse like we have, because it’s only going to be more intense in the playoffs. Once we get there,” said forward William Karlsson, who has three goals and nine points in a six-game point streak.
Vegas, which was on a 6-0-1 run before the setback in Tempe, Ariz., has won two of three meetings this season with the Canucks and beat them 6-3 at home last Tuesday.
Even though they are atop the Pacific Division standings, the Canucks have their own woes to contend with right now.
Vancouver (47-22-8, 102 points) has lost two of three games and won only twice in six outings. The Canucks are coming off a 6-3 road loss to the Kings on Saturday.
“Kind of a hard one to evaluate. It’s frustrating,” said forward J.T. Miller, who has collected two goals and eight points in a seven-game point streak. “We seemed to crack more than they did, and they won the special teams game. I know each team got shorties (short-handed goals), but they capitalized on the power play and we didn’t.”
Vancouver, with five more games remaining in the regular season, is three points ahead of the Edmonton Oilers for top spot in the Pacific Division. Edmonton does have one game in hand.
The Canucks have already earned a berth in the Stanley Cup playoffs but have struggled without No. 1 goaltender Thatcher Demko due to injury. They have five wins in their last 11 outings, all against non-playoff teams. They have lost all five games in that span against clubs sitting in playoff positions and another against a Washington Capitals squad in the multi-team mix battling for an Eastern Conference position.
The job of coach Rick Tocchet right now is to keep his charges upbeat. He delivered a positive message after the Los Angeles game despite the fact his team surrendered a pair of early power-play goals and trailed 4-1 before the game’s midway point.
“You can look at the six goals and think it’s bad, but I actually liked the effort,” Tocchet said. “Guys were trying hard. Just too many egregious mistakes, and then it’s in your net.”
–Field Level Media
