RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — William Karlsson left the ice, and the Vegas Golden Knights' night went south.
With Karlsson knocked out of Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final because of injury, the Golden Knights took four penalties that turned into two power-play goals against. Carter Hart allowed four goals for a fifth consecutive game in the series, and now his team is on the brink of elimination after losing 4-2 to Carolina on Thursday night.
Karlsson making his playoff debut at the start of the second round changed everything for Vegas, shifting Mitch Marner to the wing and providing the kind of strong, reliable center depth needed to win this time of year. Karlsson had nine points in 14 games after missing the previous six months because of an undisclosed injury.
This time, it appeared to be his left arm or shoulder after getting knocked into the boards by Hurricanes defenseman Sean Walker a little over eight minutes into the second period. Karlsson got medical attention on the bench briefly, skated off and never returned.
Coach John Tortorella has been unwilling to provide injury updates.
But the void left by Karlsson's departure was all too clear, especially on the penalty kill. Carolina's Andrei Svechnikov scored the first of his two power play goals less than four minutes after Karlsson left, then added another in the third.
Hart was screened by Jeremy Lauzon on Svechnikov's first goal, and he was hardly to blame for the loss. But Vegas still lost for the 32nd time in 39 times this season and playoffs when allowing four or more.
___
AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
-
Golden Knights acquire defenseman Parker Wotherspoon in trade for Kaedan Korczak
Kaedan Korczak leaves Vegas for Pittsburgh, in exchange for Penguins D-man Parker Wotherspoon, VGK general manager Kelly McCrimmon announced.
One-on-one with new Henderson Silver Knights head coach Joel Ward
Channel 13's Alex Eschelman sat down with Joel Ward, who was introduced Monday as the next head coach of the Henderson Silver Knights of the AHL.
FULL PRESS CONFERENCE: Joel Ward named newest head coach for Henderson Silver Knights
The Ontario native has spent his entire coaching career with the Golden Knights organization, serving as an assistant coach for VGK from 2023-26 and with the Silver Knights from 2020-23.
Golden Knights GM, director of scouting hold post-draft press conference
Vegas Golden Knights general manager Kelly McCrimmon and director of amateur scouting Raphael Pouliot hold a press conference after the 2026 NHL Draft.
