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William Karlsson

Pacific Injury Notes: Vlasic, Karlsson, Myers

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Veteran San Jose Sharks defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic told media that he’s hoping to return to action in a few weeks, and described his injury as “upper-body-ish”, shares Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News. Vlasic has been facing the ailment since the start of training camp, missing the bulk of camp activities and getting placed on injured reserve on October 7th. That’s the same day that he returned to the team’s practices, though he’s made it clear that he’s still a ways out.

Vlasic fell out of the Sharks lineup last season, missing time to both injury and routine healthy scratches. That includes an upper-body injury suffered in February that held Vlasic out for two weeks, though he was able to play in 24 more games before the season ended. He’s popping up on the injury report more and more in his golden years, with multi-week absences in every season since 2019. Once a core fixture of the Sharks blue-line, the 37-year-old Vlasic now sits on the outskirts of the lineup – even when healthy. He’ll first focus on getting back to full health, and then faces a battle with youngsters Jack Thompson and Henry Thrun for depth minutes.

Other notes from out West:

  • Vegas Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy told reporters that centerman William Karlsson won’t travel with the team on their upcoming three-game road trip, shares Danny Webster of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. His next chance to return will most likely come when the Golden Knights return home on October 22nd, though Cassidy didn’t rule out the possibility of Karlsson joining the team midway through the trip. He was placed on injured reserve with an undisclosed injury on October 8th. He started training camp healthy, but was quickly bumped out of the lineup by injury and now hasn’t skated since September 26th. Karlsson recorded 60 points, split evenly, in 70 games with the Golden Knights last season. He’ll stand as a pivotal piece of the lineup when he’s back to full health, especially after Chandler Stephenson moved to Seattle and Jonathan Marchessault moved to Nashville this summer.
  • Vancouver Canucks defender Tyler Myers seems to have avoided the worst of things after having his ankle landed on awkwardly in Friday night’s matchup with Philadelphia. Myers needed helped off the ice. Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet designated the defender as day-to-day and shared that he will travel with the team on their upcoming four-game road trip, shares Canucks Army’s Jeff Paterson. Vancouver dodges a blow to their shallowest position group with this news, though Canucks Army’s Clarke Corsan lists Mark Friedman and Erik Brannstrom as potential fill-ins while Myers nurses his ankle.

Pacific Notes: Sharks Roster, Sharks Injuries, Karlsson

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The San Jose Sharks have collectively cut 12 players from their training camp roster today bringing their total bodies down to 38. In an earlier article, Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News broke down some of the remaining camp battles on the roster with three games remaining in the preseason.

The organization’s forward core appears locked up with the remaining battles set to determine the 13th and 14th forwards on the opening night roster. Pashelka argues that forward Klim Kostin has already earned himself a spot for the regular season as the team would like to avoid putting him on waivers. The final spot remains a big question for San Jose. Will the team opt for an enforcer like Givani Smith to protect the youngsters when needed or look to add more available talent in Ethan Cardwell or Daniil Gushchin? Guschin likely has the inside edge if the team chooses the latter after scoring 20 goals and 54 points in 56 games for AHL San Jose last year.

The Sharks have a bigger question on defense with notable injuries to start the year (more on that later). Jack Thompson, acquired from the Tampa Bay Lightning and debuting last season, should be the odds-on-favorite for the seventh defenseman position by the end of training camp. Pashelka warns that even if Thompson represents the youngster with the most professional experience up to this point he still needs to play most nights rather than sit as a healthy scratch if he does make the roster.

Other Pacific notes:

  • Pashelka gave a few updates on the injured members of the Sharks’ defensive core earlier today. He shares that defensemen Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Shakir Mukhamadullin skated today and are still considered day-to-day. Still, their regular season opener availability is questionable. Circumstances appear to be different between the pipes with Pashelka also sharing that Yaroslav Askarov practiced with the team “for a little bit” today. Askarov has not practiced with the team once since the start of training camp a few weeks ago and his presence on the ice is a positive development.
  • Vegas Golden Knights center William Karlsson was not on the ice for practice again today and there appears to be a growing concern he may not be ready for opening night (X Link). It’s been over a week since he took the ice but the organization remains hopeful he will be healthy for the team’s regular-season opener on October 9th. Karlsson is set to be the second-line center for the Golden Knights this season although Nicolas Roy has been filling that void in the lineup for the last week.

Pacific Notes: Vegas Injuries, Bahl, Gazizov

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The Vegas Golden Knights were without forward William Karlsson and defenseman Nicolas Hague at practice today (X Link). The former hasn’t been with the team since this past Sunday while Hague seemingly injured himself in last night’s preseason contests against the Los Angeles Kings.

One would reasonably assume Karlsson is dealing with an undisclosed injury given that Vegas held him out of Tuesday’s practice and the game yesterday evening. He did practice toward the start of training camp but may enter the 2024-25 regular season without factoring into a preseason game. Karlsson is coming off another solid season for the Golden Knights last year scoring 30 goals and 60 points in 70 games and will look to build on that total this year.

Hague shouldn’t be out too long with Jesse Granger of The Athletic reporting he was out for a maintenance day. This was thought to be the likely reason for his absence from practice today as Hague returned to play the rest of last night’s action after missing briefly at the start of the second period. Granger shared that head coach Bruce Cassidy expects Hague to return to practice tomorrow with the team.

Other Pacific notes:

  •  Head coach of the Calgary Flames, Ryan Huska, indicates defenseman Kevin Bahl could be making his preseason debut with the organization as reported by Sportsnet’s Pat Steinberg. The 6’6″ defenseman is preparing to begin his first year with the Flames after being the only player acquired by the team in the trade that sent goaltender Jacob Markstrom to the New Jersey Devils. Steinberg shares that Bahl has been nursing a lower-body injury which has precluded him from skating with the team so far but gave no indication when the injury was suffered.
  • The AHL affiliate of the Anaheim Ducks, the San Diego Gulls, are bringing in a bit of forward depth announcing a one-year standard contract for Ruslan Gazizov. It will mark Gazizov’s first year in professional hockey after an impressive three-year run with the OHL’s London Knights. The young Russian forward finished third on the Knights in scoring last season with 36 goals and 81 points in 63 games including another seven goals and 14 points in 15 playoff contests.

Injury Notes: Celebrini, Karlsson, Svechkov

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Max Miller of The Hockey News is reporting that San Jose Sharks rookie phenom Macklin Celebrini left practice today with a lower-body issue. No specifics were given to the media as the Sharks coaching staff referred to the issue as a “Little bit of everything” and they believe that the 18-year-old will practice tomorrow with the team.

The first overall pick in this year’s NHL entry draft had a strong preseason debut on Sunday night against the Vegas Golden Knights scoring a goal and adding an assist. No word on whether or not the issue popped up from something that happened in the game or during training camp. The Sharks aren’t expected to compete for the playoffs this season, but it will be an important season nonetheless as they try to develop their young core.

In other injury notes from around the league:

  • Vegas Golden Knights forward William Karlsson took a maintenance day today and did not practice with the team (as per SinBin.Vegas). Karlsson’s absence is injury-related, although the ailment is being kept out of the media at this time. The 31-year-old won’t play tomorrow but Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy wouldn’t rule him out beyond tomorrow. Karlsson has been relatively durable throughout his career but dealt with a lower-body injury in the second half of last season that kept him out of action for over a month.
  • Alex Daugherty of The Tennessean writes that Nashville Predators forward Fedor Svechkov will be out of action week-to-week with what appears to be a lower-body injury. The 2021 first-round pick has yet to see NHL action after he came over to North America last season and spent the year in the AHL. He appeared to be injured in the Predators preseason game against the Florida Panthers on Sunday after he took a hit from Tobias Bjornfot. Svechkov couldn’t put weight on his left leg as he headed off the ice and down the tunnel.

Pacific Notes: Demko, Karlsson, Kraken

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Frank Seravalli of DailyFaceoff is reporting that Vancouver Canucks goaltender Thatcher Demko will be out of the lineup through at least game 4 of the Canucks second-round series against the Edmonton Oilers. The netminder is making progress and is back on the ice skating, but his earliest return would be for game 5.

The 28-year-old hasn’t played since suffering a lower-body injury in game 1 of the Canucks first-round series against the Nashville Predators. His work in practice thus far has consisted of skating sprints, working side-to-side, and some work on his butterfly. The Vezina Trophy finalist hasn’t taken part in any live drills as of yet, but if he continues to progress it could happen sooner than later.

In other Pacific Division notes:

  • Vegas Golden Knights forward William Karlsson told reporters today that his hamstring bothered him through the first round of the playoffs and caused issues with his skating. The lower-body issue didn’t keep Karlsson out of the lineup, but it certainly limited the 31-year-old’s effectiveness as he posted just two assists in seven playoff games after registering 30 goals and 30 assists in 70 regular season games. Karlsson has three years remaining on his eight-year $47.2MM contract and will likely continue to be a middle-six option for Vegas next season.
  • Geoff Baker of The Seattle Times writes that the Seattle Kraken ownership group continues to discuss a new umbrella company that would encompass the Kraken, major projects, as well as a potential NBA team in Seattle. The NBA is eyeing expansion in the near future and the city of Seattle as well as Las Vegas are reportedly among the frontrunners to land an expansion team. Seattle has been without an NBA team since the SuperSonics moved to Oklahoma City back in 2008, but with the Kraken making moves to form an umbrella company it would put them in a good position to enter into NBA expansion.

Evening Notes: Russian Showcase, Hague, Karlsson, Raymond

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Due to regulations that have been put in place by the National Hockey League, a limited number of teams have been able to travel to Russia in an attempt to scout upcoming overseas talent for the 2024 NHL Draft. However, it appears a solution has been developed, as Kevin Weekes of ESPN reports that a Russian showcase will take place from June 18th to 23rd.

Being the most high-profile Russian prospect available at this year’s draft, it is unlikely that forward Ivan Demidov will usurp Macklin Celebrini as the top player in this year’s class due to the showcase. However, after Celebrini, there is no singular player who is a surefire pick for second overall, meaning Demidov could use this showcase to his advantage.

Of the other Russian prospects projected to go in the first round of the 2024 NHL Draft, Anton Silayev and Igor Chernyshov could also use the showcase to their advantage. However, even though he is projected as the second-best international skater, it is hard to imagine a scenario where Silayev is selected any higher than the third defensemen off the board.

Other notes:

  • Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Nicolas Hague has been ruled out of tonight’s third game against Dallas and remains listed as day-to-day notes Danny Webster of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.  He missed the second game of the series due to a lower-body injury which will cost him now at least a second contest.  The 25-year-old led all Vegas blueliners in hits this season with 155 while chipping in with a dozen points in 73 games. Alec Martinez played in place of Hague last game and should do so again.
  • Staying in Vegas, even though he was not on the ice for the team’s practice this morning, forward William Karlsson is expected to suit up for the Golden Knights tonight reports Jesse Granger of The Athletic. After another quality regular season in Vegas, Karlsson has been able to suit up in the first two games of the series but has failed to find the scoresheet so far. Nevertheless, with Karlsson confirmed in the lineup, the third line of Karlsson, Tomas Hertl, and Anthony Mantha still represents one of the premier third lines in this year’s playoffs.
  • Joining many of his teammates and coaches for this summer’s 2024 IIHF World Championship, Chris Johnston of TSN reports that Detroit Red Wings’ forward Lucas Raymond will join Team Sweden for the international tournament. Raymond represents one of the best offensive options for Team Sweden after experiencing a breakout year during the 2023-24 campaign. In 82 games, Raymond scored 31 goals and 72 points, leading all Red Wings in scoring.

Injury Notes: Karlsson, Kapanen, Faulk, Fleury

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Having played their last game before the NHL All-Star break on Saturday night, the Vegas Golden Knights will get a reinforcement as soon as they return, as forward William Karlsson has been officially activated from the long-term injured reserve (X Link). Out with a lower-body injury since the team’s Winter Class game against the Seattle Kraken, Karlsson has missed a total of 12 games for the Golden Knight with this injury.

Although Karlsson has largely been one of the more productive scorers on Vegas’ roster this season, the team has produced a 7-4-1 record in his absence, garnering more appreciation as a Stanley Cup contender in the Western Conference. Before his lower-body injury took him out of the lineup, Karlsson scored 15 goals and 32 points in 38 games for the Golden Knights which still places him fourth on the team in scoring.

As Vegas continues to the Vancouver Canucks as the top team in the Pacific Division, Karlsson will be an important addition back in the lineup. After the All-Star break, to finish off the month of February, the Golden Knights have challenging games against the Edmonton Oilers, Carolina Hurricanes, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Boston Bruins.

Other injury notes:

  • After being placed on the injured reserve on January 16th with a lower-body injury, the St.Louis Blues will be expecting forward Kasperi Kapanen back after the All-Star break (X Link). As one of the more prominent depth offensive pieces on the Blues’ roster, Kapanen has struggled a bit over the course of the season, scoring four goals and 13 points in 42 games on the year.
  • Sticking in St.Louis,  Justin Faulk suffered a lower-body injury in the team’s most recent game against the Calgary Flames and will be kept out until after the All-Star break (X Link). Sitting second on the team in scoring amongst defensemen, Faulk has scored two goals and 19 points in 40 games this season, with only two of those points coming on the team’s powerplay.
  • In another activation from the long-term injured reserve, the Tampa Bay Lightning have done just that with defenseman Haydn Fleury, according to CapFriendly. Having been placed on the team’s LTIR since January 1st with an upper-body injury, Fleury has filled a similar role to which he has played in the past this season, averaging just over 15 minutes of ice time in 12 games for the team this year in a depth role.

Pacific Notes: Whitecloud, Karlsson, Canucks, Flames

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The Vegas Golden Knights are grappling with uncertainty surrounding the availability of defenseman Zach Whitecloud for their opening night banner-raising against the Seattle Kraken next Tuesday. Head coach Bruce Cassidy, during a press conference Wednesday, expressed hesitance to confirm Whitecloud’s participation in the season opener.

Cassidy said that until Zach is on the ice, he can’t say he expects him to play. Whitecloud, a key depth piece for the Golden Knights, has been dealing with an undisclosed issue that has kept him off the ice during preseason activities for around a week. The 26-year-old missed significant time last season with injury, playing 59 out of 82 games and recording 12 points and a +10 rating. When healthy, he’s expected to resume his usual role on the team’s third pairing behind Alex Pietrangelo and Shea Theodore on the team’s right side.

Elsewhere in the Pacific Division today:

  • Sticking with Vegas, they’re also dealing with a day-to-day injury to center William Karlsson that is not expected to stretch into the regular season. Cassidy said he’s been dealing with an undisclosed issue throughout training camp to date and that he will not play in tomorrow’s preseason contest against the Colorado Avalanche. Karlsson played a crucial role in the Knights’ run to the 2023 Stanley Cup, recording 11 goals and 17 points in 22 games. His 53 points last season were his highest since 2018-19, his sophomore campaign with Vegas, after potting 43 goals in the 2017-18 season.
  • The Vancouver Canucks are bringing in some reinforcements, recalling multiple players from the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks today. Goaltender Arturs Silovs, defenseman Filip Johansson, and forwards Arshdeep Bains, Linus Karlsson, Aatu Räty, and Max Sasson will be available to the team for tonight’s preseason contest against the Seattle Kraken. All will likely get returned to the minors tomorrow after being cut from Canucks camp earlier this week.
  • Sportsnet’s Eric Francis believes a “significant announcement” regarding a new arena for the Calgary Flames could come tomorrow. Plans for a new home to replace the aging Scotiabank Saddledome are already well underway, with their ownership group and the Alberta government reaching a preliminary agreement for a new arena after the end of last season. The provincial government also greenlit the first C$39MM dedicated to the project last month.

William Karlsson Enters COVID Protocol

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Though he’s still on long-term injured reserve and hasn’t played in a month, William Karlsson has been moved into the COVID protocol, according to Vegas Golden Knights head coach Pete DeBoer, who spoke with reporters including Jesse Granger of The Athletic today. Karlsson was moved to long-term injured reserve recently when the team activated Max Pacioretty, as the Golden Knights continue to perform a delicate salary cap dance.

It’s been four weeks since Karlsson broke his foot and was given a six-week recovery timeline, meaning this doesn’t necessarily take him out of the picture for any game action. It could however set his rehab back, as if Karlsson tested positive and is experiencing any symptoms, he’ll have to isolate for a minimum of ten days. After a solid few years in Vegas it’s been a hard start to the season for the 28-year-old center, who has just eight games under his belt and registered just three points in that time.

DeBoer provided updates on some other players, indicating that Nolan Patrick has taken some positive steps in his recovery but is not close to returning. Patrick hasn’t played in over a month and remains a “What could have been?” candidate now nearly five years into his NHL career. It’s been nothing but injuries for the 2017 second-overall pick, including a migraine issue that kept him out the entire 2019-20 season. Patrick is signed through the 2022-23 season, but it is completely unclear whether he’ll ever be able to get his career back on track. He has just five goals and ten points since the end of the 2018-19 season.

Injury Notes: Avalanche, Karlsson, Mikheyev

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The Colorado Avalanche will be playing shorthanded tomorrow night, as Mikko Rantanen and Cale Makar have both been ruled out. Makar is listed as day-to-day according to Peter Baugh of The Athletic while he deals with an upper-body injury. Andre Burakovsky meanwhile is also doubtful for the game, and Jonas Johansson will start in net.

Perhaps luckily, the Avalanche have a relatively light schedule over the next little while. After tomorrow’s game they will not play again until Saturday, then they have another four days off before next Thursday’s match against the Vancouver Canucks. Some of these minor issues will hopefully get time to heal as they try to get back on the path of a real contender, not struggling in the middle of the Central Division table.

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