If the Vegas Golden Knights are going to close the book on their second round series against the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday, they will have to do so without one of their top defensemen.
On Wednesday, the NHL Department of Player Safety ruled that Brayden McNabb will be suspended for one game due to his hit on Ducks forward Ryan Poehling in Game Five on Tuesday.
Nine minutes into the first period of Game Five, McNabb was called for interference due to the hit on Poehling. After review, he was given a five-minute major penalty and a game misconduct.
Poehling had to be helped off the ice and did not return to the game for what the Ducks called an upper body injury. Anaheim head coach Joel Quenneville also confirmed that the forward will miss Game Six.
“That’s tough to watch that type of play. It’s a tough play and (Poehling) is very useful, he gives us a lot of different versatility in how you apply him, and I certainly hope he’s going to be fine,” Quenneville said about Poehling.
McNabb’s suspension puts Vegas in a bind with their defensive corps, which was already shorthanded with Jeremy Lauzon not playing a game in the series against Anaheim.
The impact of McNabb’s absence was felt throughout Game Five as well. Ben Hutton and Dylan Coghlan, who were both brought into the lineup as depth options, ended up playing 19 and 20 minutes, respectively, as part of the impromptu five-man rotation. With McNabb out of the lineup, they will have to rise to the challenge once again.
“They gave us really good minutes,” said defenseman Rasmus Andersson after Game Five. “And I thought they were as steady as it comes. That’s what you need in playoffs. You need people to step up when their opportunity is called.”
The Golden Knights do have some options for who to put in place of McNabb for Game Six. Kaedan Korczak could draw back into the lineup, or the team could opt for a dart throw in Lukas Cormier, who tied for the lead among defensemen with 47 points for the AHL’s Henderson Silver Knights.
Either way, the Golden Knights were already feeling the effects of the war of attrition that was Game Five, and it appears the impact will extend to Game Six as well.