Golden Knights prospects will come to Las Vegas soon

Golden Knights prospects Peyton Krebs, Kaedan Korczak and Brendan Brisson wrapped up the World Junior Championship on Tuesday, but it still might be awhile before Krebs and Korczak show up for training camp.

Knights coach Pete DeBoer said Wednesday the team will give Krebs and Korczak, who were part of Team Canada’s silver medal-winning squad, two to three days off before bringing them to Las Vegas. Brisson, a forward who helped the U.S. win gold, is expected to return to the University of Michigan.

Krebs and Korczak will have to quarantine for seven days before practicing if they fly commercially, according to the NHL’s 2021 COVID-19 protocols.

“I think the latest plan is we would give them a couple days to kind of decompress,” DeBoer said. “(They’ve) played a lot of hockey.”

DeBoer said he’s excited to see both players. Korczak, a 2019 second-round pick, played in all seven games for Canada and had one assist. DeBoer said he was impressed that the defenseman fought his way onto a stacked roster featuring 20 first-round picks, including six on the blue line.

“The fact that he worked himself into that group says something about him and his development since we drafted him,” DeBoer said.

Krebs, the Knights’ 2019 first-round pick, finished tied for second on Team Canada in scoring with eight points. General manager Kelly McCrimmon pointed out before camp that Krebs was producing despite playing his third-best position at the tournament. Krebs, a natural center and left-hand shot, played right wing for the Canadians.

“I thought he had an excellent tournament,” DeBoer said. “(Krebs is) going to be knocking on the door here.”

Dress rehearsal

DeBoer said the Knights will play a simulated game Thursday at T-Mobile Arena as part of their preparation for the regular season. The idea is for players to get familiar with their game-day routine again before their opener Jan. 14.

“As an example, Alex Pietrangleo hasn’t been at our home dressing room at T-Mobile except on a tour,” DeBoer said. “He hasn’t parked his car there and walked in, done a pregame situation.”

Shaving off strokes

Knights defenseman Brayden McNabb said his golf game noticeably improved during the offseason. He said he played a lot with teammates in Las Vegas.

“We have a big crew who like to get better and always want to shoot lower,” McNabb said. “It was a lot of fun. With the amount of time off, I think everyone kind of improved their game, for sure.”

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