Keegan Kolesar ‘more confident’ entering 2nd season with Knights

It took until the second day of training camp for Keegan Kolesar to remark to teammate Reilly Smith about the different way he was feeling.

Ten months earlier in January, he was fighting for his spot on the Golden Knights’ opening-night roster. He returned this preseason having gone through the rigors of an NHL campaign, and it’s resulted in a new mindset.

“It’s a lot less worrying about messing up as opposed to being on the team previously and trying to crack the squad,” Kolesar said. “It’s more just trying to get yourself ready.”

The contrast has been obvious. Kolesar is playing confident, assertive hockey after appearing in 44 games as a rookie. The 24-year-old, his sea legs firmly under him, appears ready to provide crucial secondary scoring for the Knights.

“Kolesar looks really good,” coach Pete DeBoer said. “He’s got a rare combination of size, skill, physicality. It’s really hard to find that. He looks more confident this year.”

Kolesar started last season in the NHL, but he was still finding his way.

DeBoer admitted during the playoffs that he wasn’t sure how much Kolesar would contribute. He was used as a 13th forward at times and didn’t get a regular shift, making it harder for him to get into a rhythm.

He gradually settled in. He started getting consistent minutes and impressed by creating scoring chances while doing so.

He scored his first goal March 22 against St. Louis and added two more before the year was done. General manager Kelly McCrimmon said during the playoffs that Kolesar was the team’s most improved player.

There’s hope that development can continue his second year.

“Especially for the young guys growing up, a year makes a big difference,” left wing William Carrier said. “I don’t know if it’s confidence or just strength, getting bigger or more of a man. He’s proved he’s got some great skills. He skates well. I’m looking forward to this year playing with him.”

There are signs Kolesar has a chance to eclipse the three goals and 13 points he scored last season. He had 7.51 scoring chances per 60 minutes at five-on-five, sixth-best on the Knights among skaters who played at least 10 games. His stats could jump up if he converts more of those.

It seems likely he’ll do so. Kolesar shot 6.5 percent as a rookie, down from his 14.1 percent mark in the American Hockey League and below the NHL average of 9.7 percent. His shot is enough of a weapon, as he showed by scoring in Tuesday’s preseason game, to beat good goaltenders if he trusts it.

“I think I’ve always been just a hesitant guy to shoot it,” Kolesar said. “It feels a lot nicer if you can get a backdoor tap-in maybe growing up. I think this year, I’d like to just put an emphasis on shooting more, becoming more of a shooter, less of a passer.”

A more productive Kolesar could do wonders for the Knights as they try to spread the scoring wealth among all four of their lines. He already ranked seventh on the team in five-on-five points per 60 minutes last year among skaters with at least 10 games. It would be a luxury for the Knights if he could better that mark while playing in their bottom six.

“I don’t know if he’s faster, but he’s more confident,” DeBoer said. “He has the puck more. The game slows down for young players after they get a little bit of experience, have a little bit of success in the league. I think that’s what you’re seeing.”

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