Golden Knights’ injury, COVID woes ‘getting a little bit old’

Only about halfway through an 82-game season, Pete DeBoer sounded beaten down. So much so that he didn’t even want to bother with the cliches.

“The next man up stuff is getting a little bit old,” the Golden Knights coach said Tuesday night after an overtime loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The Knights, as has been typical for them this season, entered the game undermanned. Left wings Max Pacioretty and William Carrier, defenseman Nic Hague and backup goaltender Laurent Brossoit? Hurt. Centers Nolan Patrick and Nicolas Roy and defensemen Shea Theodore and Alec Martinez? In COVID-19 protocol. And, in Martinez’s case, also hurt.

The lengthy list of absences is why the Knights aren’t complaining about another break in their schedule after being off for the holidays. Their next game isn’t until Monday, which could be enough time to get closer to full strength.

“Rest is the best weapon in sports,” right wing Keegan Kolesar said. “For us, we’re down a number of guys, so that five-day break gives them a period to get back into our lineup and get healthy. It’s only a positive for us.”

It was only last month that the Knights thought they were also getting a break at an opportune time.

They didn’t play from Dec. 22 to 28, a needed respite after completing eight games in 14 days and four in six.

It took them two weeks to get back to the same spot. Injuries on the current homestand caused the Knights to play third-string goaltender Logan Thompson on Jan. 4 against the Nashville Predators and call up three players to ice a full lineup against Toronto.

The missing bodies on defense led to defenseman Alex Pietrangelo playing 32:30 in a 65-minute game Tuesday, a career high.

“I’m sure tomorrow I’ll pick up my kids and I’ll feel something in the back of my hamstrings,” Pietrangelo said.

The Knights can only hope things will be different on the other side of the break. The long wait before Monday’s game against the Pittsburgh Penguins at T-Mobile Arena gives Patrick, Roy, Theodore and Martinez enough time to clear the COVID-19 protocol.

The team could use the reinforcements to finish their season-long eight-game homestand strong after a 2-2-2 start. The Knights have played an NHL-leading 23 home games, so they need to give themselves as much cushion as possible in the Pacific Division standings.

Calgary, second by points percentage, is eight points back with six games in hand.

The Knights also need to hope the break does them some good because they learned after their last pause there’s no guarantee their path will get easier. Injuries and COVID-19 always will be lurking around the corner.

The Knights are already one player away — Jack Eichel, perhaps? — from tying the team record for the most used in a season. They have 188 man games lost, 67 more than last season’s total.

The team’s 23-14-2 record is the best in the division and fifth-best in the conference despite all that. But the grind to get there is why another break could be coming at the right time.

“I think we’ve been hit harder than anybody this year,” DeBoer said. “You hope that evens out eventually.”

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