Forward William Karlsson tallied an assist in the 3-1 Vegas Golden Knights victory against the Anaheim Ducks at T-Mobile Arena on Monday.
For Karlsson, it marked the first complete game he played alongside Tomáš Hertl.
Hertl and Karlsson used to be rivals when Hertl played for the San Jose Sharks. The two teams had memorable games during their careers, including intense games during the playoffs.
But when the Golden Knights traded for Hertl at the trade deadline last season, it brought together the former rivals.
Now, they are playing on the same line, and Karlsson has been enjoying the experience with Hertl.
“I like playing with him. He’s fantastic,” Karlsson said. “He got the vision, and he’s pretty shifty, pretty good at protecting the puck, stuff like that. So we probably just got to be a little more effective. We had the chances. But we haven’t buried too many. The chances are there. It’s been good.”
The trio of Hertl, Karlsson and Keegan Kolesar played 9:38 of ice time together during 5-on-5 play and had an expected goals number of 1.021, according to Moneypuck. They also had expected goals against number of .253, making one of the better two-way lines against the Ducks.
Karlsson has been playing with various wingers this season, but maybe Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy has found something playing Hertl on Karlsson’s wing, along with Kolesar.
Three takeaways from the Golden Knights’ 3-1 victory against Ducks
Paul Delos Santos is the Las Vegas sports insider for Dice City Sports. Follow him on X at @PaulDelos_.
