Knights send goaltender on conditioning loan to Henderson
Golden Knights goaltender Laurent Brossoit isn’t with the team for the start of a five-game road trip as he takes the next step in his recovery from offseason hip surgery.
The Knights announced Monday that Brossoit has been sent to the Silver Knights on a long-term injured reserve conditioning loan. The 29-year-old hasn’t appeared in a game since March 15. His maximum stay in Henderson is six days or three games, whichever comes last, according to the NHL collective bargaining agreement. The loan can also be extended an additional two games if Commissioner Gary Bettman approves a written request.
The Silver Knights have Friday and Saturday games against Bakersfield and a Tuesday matchup with San Diego. Coach Manny Viveiros said he’ll get direction from the front office later this week on what games, if any, Brossoit will play.
“It brings excitement to our group,” Viveiros said. “Today’s practice, he came in and he was outstanding.”
The Golden Knights will face a decision when Brossoit’s loan is up. Their roster is at the 23-player maximum.
The team — which has the second-best record in the NHL at 8-2 — could attempt to keep Brossoit in Henderson and see if his $2.325 million cap hit passes through waivers. The Knights could also try to send a different player down, though only goaltender Logan Thompson is waiver exempt.
The team might be reluctant to break up its goaltender duo of Thompson and Adin Hill if they keep up their current production. They’ve helped the Knights allow the fewest goals in the NHL (17). Thompson ranks fifth in the league in save percentage (.943) and Hill is sixth (.940).
Brossoit was 10-9-3 with a .895 save percentage with the Knights last year. He is 42-41-8 in his career with a .905 save percentage. Brossoit has more NHL appearances (106) than Thompson (26) and Hill combined (78).
“That’ll be a conversation we’ll have to have,” Knights coach Bruce Cassidy said Thursday. “It won’t be an easy one in terms of decision-making because we are getting solid play from that position. Yet (Brossoit’s) the most experienced one. I don’t know how it’s going to play out. I really don’t.”
Silver Knights’ start
Henderson is 2-6 to begin the year, but Viveiros and right wing Jonas Rondbjerg believe the team is playing better than its record indicates.
Four of the Silver Knights’ losses have been by one goal. Another was a one-goal game until Ontario scored an empty netter with 14 seconds remaining.
The Silver Knights defeated Colorado 4-2 their last time out and have five days in between games to build off that performance. Rondbjerg said one thing the team did well against the Eagles was take care of the “little details,” like puck management at key times.
“I don’t really agree with our record right now,” Rondbjerg said. “I think we’ll be fine going forward.”
Morozov update
Center Ivan Morozov has yet to play a game with the Silver Knights this season due to an undisclosed injury, but that could change this weekend.
Viveiros said Morozov, a 2018 second-round pick, will be a full participant in practice Tuesday. Viveiros said “there’s a really good chance” the 22-year-old plays against Bakersfield if he gets through the week without issues.
Contact Ben Gotz at bgotz@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BenSGotz on Twitter.
