Golden Knights defensemen get workout to begin NHL season

The Golden Knights defensemen have seen plenty of ice time through the team’s first two games. Maybe too much, in fact.

To keep Keegan Kolesar on the roster and avoid exposing him to waivers, the Knights began the season with five defensemen instead of the traditional six. That’s meant extra minutes for the guys on the blue line, a circumstance coach Pete DeBoer is monitoring during this condensed season.

In Saturday’s win against the Anaheim Ducks, DeBoer noted that a few defensemen were caught in long shifts and played more than he would’ve liked.

“I think they’ve done a phenomenal job with the rotation, but the minute number on some guys is something we’ve got to watch because we’re only two games in and the schedule gets really busy,” DeBoer said.

All five members of the Knights’ blue line are, unsurprisingly, on pace for a career high in ice time. Brayden McNabb has averaged the fewest minutes at 21:44, 30 seconds behind Shea Theodore’s team-leading average of 22:14 from last season.

Relief may already be on the way. Defenseman Nic Hague practiced with the second power-play unit Sunday, indicating he could be called up from the taxi squad for Monday’s game against Arizona. DeBoer said “we’re considering all options right now” when asked if Hague will play.

Hague could swap places with center Cody Glass on the roster and keep the Knights cap compliant. That could help give the defensemen an easier workload, though Theodore said Saturday morning he was fine with the five-man setup.

“The quality of defensemen that we have back there, it definitely makes it easy being able to switch and adjust to new partners,” Theodore said Saturday before playing 27:09, the second-highest regular-season total in his career, in the Knights’ 2-1 overtime win. “I think starting the season with five, you definitely get some more ice in your first game and get a little bit of flow, which is always nice.”

Four-game set

The Knights began their season by facing Anaheim twice, the first time in their history they’ve played the same opponent in consecutive home games. Their next stretch is even more unique.

The Knights will play Arizona four straight times — twice at home, then twice on the road — in one of two four-game sets against the same opponent on their schedule. They will also face Colorado four straight times from Feb. 14-22. That includes their Feb. 20 outdoor game at Lake Tahoe.

“I know that after two games playing against Anaheim I was ready to move on,” left wing Jonathan Marchessault said. “I don’t know how that’s going to be after doing three (games).”

Contact Ben Gotz at bgotz@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BenSGotz on Twitter.