Once upon a time, there was a man named Tomas Hertl who lived by four simple words: "fun must be always." He also played for the annoying San Jose Sharks, an adversary of the Vegas Golden Knights. At least, that's what San Jose believed.
Anyway, Hertl didn't stand out too much against the Golden Knights. He had seven goals and nine assists in 27 career games against his current team, making him somewhat of a villain on the surface. But it's the postseason moments that matter most, dear reader. Remember his shorthanded wrister that forced a Game 7 in 2019?
Who knew that a turtle could move that fast? Anyway, that goal stung badly for Golden Knights fans, especially since fans remember what happened in that fateful Game 7 (wasn't a major, by the way).
Still, this story has a happy ending to it. After all, don't we need more happy endings in our lives with the tough times we're going through (just no more for the Patriots, please)? It involves the villain reforming (sort of) and becoming a force of good for the Golden Knights. Lo and behold, he reinvents the power play and turns it into a full-fledged force.
The stats that show Tomas Hertl's turn from pure villainy to a hero's welcome
First, let's look at the power play itself. When the Golden Knights acquired him from the Sharks, the premise was that they needed a big presence in the bumper. That man was none other than Hertl, who stood at 6'3" and weighed 220 lbs.
Since the Golden Knights acquired him, they've had a power play of 26.9%, second-best in the NHL behind the Edmonton Oilers (27.1%). Part of that has come from Hertl himself, who's scored 28 goals in that span (eighth-most in the NHL). In fact, he held the single-season record for most power play goals at one point (2024-25).
Mind you, this was a historically stagnant unit before Hertl arrived. Prior to the trade, their best power play unit came in 2019-20, where they scored on 22% of their power plays. Fast forward to the modern day and the Golden Knights have surpassed that mark twice.
Sometimes, the biggest heroic turns come from the most unlikely of places
Nobody would've imagined that the Golden Knights would've done business with the San Jose Sharks. Two bitter rivals that have some playoff history trading amongst each other? That should never happen in anybody's lifetime.
Yet, it happened with Hertl. Fans forgave the former Shark for his Game 6 double-overtime goal in 2019 and watched him revolutionize the man advantage in Vegas. The funny thing that it wasn't a blistering shot or silky smooth passes that did the job. It was the Czech Olympian sticking his big keester in front of the net.
Sometimes, that's all you can ask from someone looking for a redemption arc. Give them a simple task and they'll turn water into wine. Golden Knights fans couldn't have asked for more from their beloved turtle.
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