There will be a familiar face joining the Vegas Golden Knights in Minnesota on Tuesday with William Karlsson set for a return.
According to Jesse Granger of The Athletic, Karlsson will lace up his skates for the Vegas Golden Knights against the Minnesota Wild tomorrow, while rookie Cody Glass is set to play for the Chicago Wolves in the AHL this weekend.
Before we get on to Karlsson, it makes sense for Glass to regain his sharpness in the American Hockey League as he continues to work his way back from an upper-body injury.
DeBoer said Cody Glass will play this weekend in the AHL.
— Jesse Granger (@JesseGranger_) February 10, 2020
Said the plan is also for William Karlsson to play tomorrow in Minnesota. #VegasBorn
After all, with new Head Coach Peter DeBoer continuing to experiment with his lines, it is perhaps best for Glass to find his feet and restore some confidence in the minors before being called back up.
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With 12 points (five goals, seven assists) in 37 regular season contests, Glass has shown flashes of his undoubted potential and will now have the chance to put together some more highlights on tape for DeBoer to study.
Back to Karlsson, though, and it will be a huge boost for the Golden Knights to have their best center back out on the ice.
Karlsson is a modern-day two-way center and he excels in both zones, while he also brings a different dynamic to both the penalty kill and to the power play.
As a result, having Karlsson for the road game in Minnesota on Tuesday will give DeBoer another weapon to deploy.
However, there is a twist in the tail here.
Because, according to Jesse Granger, who also reported that Karlsson has been out with a broken finger sustained in the 4-2 loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Jan. 14, the forward will center a third-line between Cody Eakin and Alex Tuch.
No matter which way you paint it, this will be a huge mistake.
For starters, I don’t even buy the whole ‘getting your legs back’ argument. You can accomplish that mission by still deploying Karlsson on the top line but by giving him shorter shifts.
At the end of the day, Karlsson is this franchise’s best center and you don’t entrench your best center on the third-line, who would be playing between 12-14 minutes a night.
That just isn’t conducive to success.
Plus, both Alex Tuch and Cody Eakin have struggled for large chunks of this year and it is just as likely that Karlsson’s play will be hindered by those two as it will that Karlsson will help to elevate both Tuch and Eakin.
And, if this is some ploy for Karlsson to prove something to DeBoer, that is utter ridiculous too given Karlsson’s history with this franchise.
The forward has truly broken out in Sin City, recording 168 points (77 goals, 91 assists) in 213 games. That isn’t a track record that needs any backing up.
The Golden Knights are locked in an competitive race for the Pacific Division and, as a result, they aren’t in the business of experimenting right now.
Karlsson should be slotted straight back on to the top line alongside Jonathan Marchessault and Reilly Smith, with the trio having a proven history of meshing incredibly well together.
As the old saying goes, you don’t fix what isn’t broken and with every win crucial for the Vegas Golden Knights right now, Peter DeBoer should leave his top two lines alone and put William Karlsson back where he belongs.
It is the best decision for both player and team.