There was a bunch of notable nuggets to come out of morning skate the day after the Vegas Golden Knights dropped their first game of the preseason 4-1 to the Colorado Avalanche.
It was a bitterly disappointing night for the Vegas Golden Knights in terms of the effort turned in, in addition to the fact that their flurry of bubble players failed to make an impact in what was arguably their final chance to stake a claim for a spot on the opening night roster.
And, as a result, the Golden Knights announced some roster transactions today and there could be more in the coming days as the front office and coaching staff continue to trim down their Training Camp roster with opening night now less than a week away.
Firstly, forwards Patrick Brown and Curtis McKenzie – who both recorded a point against the Avalanche – were placed on waivers for the purpose of assignment to the Chicago Wolves in the AHL.
And then forward Reid Duke and defensemen Dylan Coghlan were both reassigned to the Wolves, and they will now get ready to begin 2019-20 in Chicago in the AHL. With October looming ever closer, there should also be more roster cuts in the coming days.
It wasn’t surprising to see Duke sent down to the AHL, but it was somewhat of a shock to see Coghlan headed to Chicago given how impressive he was in the preseason. The young blueliner was arguably the most impressive out of the five rookies battling for a roster spot, but a bad game on Thursday ultimately cost him and he will now begin the year in the minors, although he should be encouraged by his performances throughout the preseason.
That leaves Nic Hague, Jimmy Schuldt and Jake Bischoff as the three rookie defensemen left on the Golden Knights’ Training Camp roster, and they have two preseason games left in which to impress Head Coach Gerard Gallant and secure their spot on the opening night roster.
Bischoff finished with a plus/minus rating of +1 against the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday, but Hague was the most impressive prospect behind Coghlan on the blueline and, with his incredible reach, imposing physicality and offensive upside, he could have the edge heading into the final two exhibition games.
Moving on to injuries and there were a couple of scares for the Golden Knights on Thursday with stud blueliner Shea Theodore leaving the game after the end of the second period, while rookie defenseman Zach Whitecloud was also forced out of the contest early.
There was some mixed news on that front today with Jesse Granger of The Athletic reporting that Theodore should be a participant in practice on Friday, although Zach Whitecloud is now currently week-to-week.
It is good news on Theodore who was making his preseason debut on Thursday after being restricted for the vast majority of Training Camp with a minor tweak, after spending the summer recovering from testicular cancer.
Theodore exploded last year with 12 goals and 25 assists for 37 points in 79 games and he’s primed for another gigantic year in 2019-20. He may be held out of tomorrow’s game against the LA Kings, but he could play in the preseason finale against the San Jose Sharks on Sunday.
We have reached the critical point of Training Camp now, where key roster decisions are finalized and the final two preseason games this weekend should go a long way to telling us what the opening night roster will look like.