Vegas Golden Knights: Can Alex Tuch play on the Penalty Kill?

Preseason is underway and the Vegas Golden Knights are using their slate of exhibition games to experiment and tinker with different line combinations while running the rule over a glut of prospects.

After casting their eye over the likes of Cody Glass, Jimmy Schuldt, Zach Whitecloud and Dylan Coghlan in the 6-2 victory against the Arizona Coyotes on Sunday, the Vegas Golden Knights hit the road today to take on the Colorado Avalanche and will continue to test out different ideas.

And, not only are the Golden Knights planning to give Garret Sparks a start between the pipes tonight, Head Coach Gerard Gallant has also revealed that he is planning to give Alex Tuch a chance on the penalty kill during the preseason.

Is that a good idea? Will he succeed in that role?

Tackling the first question, the more we think about it the more we are warming to the idea of Alex Tuch being used as a secret weapon on the penalty kill. It could actually be a stroke of genius by Gallant and, after all, if you are going to experiment then preseason is the perfect time and place to do so.

The other caveat at play here, before we get on to whether or not Tuch can be a success on the PK, is the fact that the forward will see a reduction in his minutes in 2019-20 due to the fact that he will start the year on the third line, so having the opportunity to have a substantial role on special teams will help to bridge that gap.

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Now we need to discuss if Tuch is suited to the penalty kill and whether or not this experiment is a worthwhile exercise or if it is doomed from the start.

Spoiler alert – I am actually a huge fan of Gallant throwing Tuch out on the PK and I am confident it could add another string to the Golden Knights’ bow when it comes to how they use their special teams.

Let me explain. First and foremost, Tuch is a big body at 6’4″ and 220 lbs and he has already established himself as a very good forechecker who can play hard in the corners, he’s disruptive, he’s powerful and he plays at full tilt every single shift.

He had 40 blocked shots, 92 hits and 69 takeaways in 2018-19 so that in itself paints a perfect picture when it comes to establishing that Tuch is very responsible in his own zone and he’s more than capable of laying the body on and disrupting the flow of the opposition’s power play.

But, what is arguably more important here is Tuch’s speed and that could be both his biggest strength and his biggest weapon on the penalty kill. He can blow by guys with ease and it is already exciting to think how many breakaways a PK unit featuring Tuch could create this year.

There is another factor to consider too. Reilly Smith and William Karlsson have been used on the penalty kill together but what about potentially combining Karlsson and Tuch on the PK? Both boast raw speed in abundance so could carve out breakaways for fun, while Tuch has a lethal release and one-timer and that weapon could be unleashed by having Karlsson lead the charge on a breakaway before teeing up Tuch in space. In other words, it has all the ingredients to be a lethal combination.

Either way, having two PK units containing Karlsson, Smith, Cody Eakin and Tuch would be a rare luxury for the Golden Knights and would allow them to dramatically improve on their penalty kill, which ranked 14th in the NHL last year with a percentage of 80.9.

Overall, it actually makes a boatload of sense to at least test Alex Tuch out on the penalty kill throughout the preseason. His minutes are going to take a hit at 5-on-5 due to the fact that he will be entrenched on the third line so by using him on special teams you make up for that, while his combination of power, speed and deadly one-timer makes him a potential potent threat on the PK and increases its chances of being a successful unit.

Being successful in professional sports is all about finding those little margins that can give you that extra edge, and the Vegas Golden Knights may well be on to something by trying Tuch out on the PK. If it works then it could be a huge secret weapon for the team throughout 2019-20 and could given them the edge in the Pacific Division.