Tomas Tatar hopes to stay in Golden Knights’ lineup
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Tomas Tatar returned to the lineup Monday for Game 3 against the San Jose Sharks in his first appearance since Game 2 of the opening-round series against Los Angeles.
A healthy scratch for four games, Tatar took 20 shifts and had one shot in 12:51 of ice time.
“It wasn’t easy but I was excited to be back,” Tatar said Tuesday. “You just try and stay ready the best you can in practice.”
Coach Gerard Gallant said he was happy with Tatar, who replaced Ryan Carpenter on the Knights’ third line with Cody Eakin and David Perron.
“I thought he did fine,” Gallant said. “He’ll be in the lineup (for Game 4).”
Lagace recalled
The Knights recalled goaltender Maxime Lagace from the Chicago Wolves, who recently concluded their American Hockey League season in the Calder Cup playoffs after losing to Rockford in the first round.
“I think there’s a lot I can learn,” said Lagace, who appeared in 16 games with the Knights this year and had a 3.92 goals-against average and an .867 save percentage. “Just to see (Marc-Andre Fleury) prepare for every game. I’m glad I get the chance to experience that and to work with the guys.”
Lagace’s most recent action came on April 26, when he made a franchise-record 72 saves as the Wolves were eliminated in triple overtime by the IceHogs, 4-3. He said he has recovered physically from a long night where he played 117:22.
“I was fighting being tired and I just trusted my instincts at that point,” Lagace said. “It was a good game and it was a disappointing way to end the season. We had a great bunch of guys and it was sad to see it end the way it did.”
The Knights are expected to call up several other Wolves players later this week to work out with the team and be on call in case there’s a rash of injuries.
Game 6 time announced
If the Knights-Sharks series goes to a sixth game, it will be played at 4:30 p.m. Sunday in San Jose. The game would be televised live by the NBC Sports Network.
The NHL has not announced a time for a potential Game 7. If it goes the distance, Game 7 would be played May 8 at T-Mobile Arena.
Sharks injury update
Sharks forward Joonas Donskoi did not play Monday due to a lower-body injury. He is day-to-day, according to coach Peter DeBoer.
The same is true for center Joe Thornton, who continues to skate, but has not returned to the lineup since having surgery on his right knee in late January.
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Contact Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913. Follow @stevecarprj on Twitter.
