RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The status of Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Brayden McNabb moving forward in the Stanley Cup Final is unclear after he took a puck to the face in Game 2.
Coach John Tortorella had no update on McNabb on Friday other than to confirm the 35-year-old was traveling home with the team. Game 3 is Saturday in Las Vegas.
McNabb left Thursday night's game after taking an 87.3 mph slap shot from Nikolaj Ehlers square in the face just past the midway point of the first period. McNabb dropped his stick, went down to the ice and grabbed his nose as he skated immediately off and down the tunnel.
“It’s a scary play," forward Brett Howden said. ”You never want to see that. Just hope he’s doing all right."
Vegas went the rest of the way with just five defensemen. McNabb’s exit had a domino effect that led those guys to playing more minutes than usual, and in particular Jeremy Lauzon was on the ice for all four Carolina goals, with one shot banking in off him, another partially the result of him losing a one-on-one battle with William Carrier and Seth Jarvis' overtime winner going past him.
“You lose a guy like Nabber who logs heavy minutes, such a good teammate, plays the game so hard, it’s tough," captain Mark Stone said. "They battled as hard as they could.”
McNabb was coming off the first three-assist performance of his NHL career in Game 1. He is one of three original Golden Knights players who have been around for the franchise's entire nine-year existence and are in the final for a third time.
“He’s a vital part of this team," said center William Karlsson, who also has been around since the beginning. “He’s been here for a long time and has been vital every year. I think he is extremely good defensively, helps us out in PK situations and stuff like that. Of course, tough to not have him for the remainder of that game.”
The Golden Knights had their optimum, healthy lineup back for the series opener when Lauzon returned from his puck-to-the-head injury that had sidelined him since the second round. That did not last long.
Either Ben Hutton, a left-handed shooter, or Kaedan Korczak, who was playing in place of Lauzon, figures to play in Game 3 on Saturday if McNabb is unavailable.
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