Golden Knights William Karlsson Slated To Return On Saturday Against The Sharks

Vegas Golden Knights centre William Karlsson is slated to make his season debut on Saturday against the San Jose Sharks per HC Bruce Cassidy.

Vegas Golden Knights centre William Karlsson is slated to make his season debut on Saturday against the San Jose Sharks per HC Bruce Cassidy.

Karlsson has been sidelined with an injury since training camp and has missed the Golden Knights' first seven games. The 31-year-old returned to practice on Tuesday in a red non-contact jersey before participating again yesterday in regular practice uniform. 

The Golden Knights have missed the Marsta, Sweden native. His goal-scoring ability is always welcomed but what they've truly missed is his ability to shut down the opponent's top line. His absence has forced Jack Eichel to be responsible for leading the offence and the defence among the forwards. Karlsson's return will take some pressure off of Eichel and allow Tomas Hertl and Nicolas Roy to play more freely and enjoy easier matchups. 

Similarly to Mark Stone, Karlsson has dealt with injuries in recent years. Stone's injuries have been long-term but Karlsson has dealt with lingering injuries at key times. 

During the playoffs last year, Karlsson missed nearly every practice and wasn't able to take face-offs. He and the Golden Knights are hoping missing this time will benefit Karlsson and allow him to deal with any discomforts he's feeling along with the injury that has kept him out of the start of the 2024-25 campaign. 

Karlsson skated between Alexander Holtz and Brendan Brisson during practice today but he has already been confirmed to be out of the lineup on Friday when the Golden Knights battle the Ottawa Senators. Cole Schwindt will centre the two young wingers while Karlsson gears up for Saturday.

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