Knights development camp: Who’s standing out?

Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy patrolled the City National Arena ice for the first time this week, getting a look at his new organization’s future.

Cassidy has been putting the Knights’ top prospects through the paces as part of the team’s first in-person development camp in three years. It’s a chance for the organization to look at all their young talent in one setting and assess the state of its pipeline.

“We tell them at the opening meeting,” Knights director of player development Wil Nichol said. “We don’t hide it. You’re being evaluated. That’s part of pro sports, and they all want to be a pro.”

The Knights’ prospects practiced during the week and scrimmaged Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Here are three takeaways from camp:

1. Korczak stands out

It’s not surprising defenseman Kaedan Korczak has looked sharp given he’s one of the older prospects participating at age 21. It’s still a good sign.

The 6-foot-3 blue liner’s smooth skating and strong defensive game have been difficult for many of the forwards to handle, especially since Silver Knights coach Manny Viveiros said Korczak has put on 10 pounds of muscle. General manager Kelly McCrimmon said the first thing he noticed is how good Korczak and defense partner Layton Ahac looked.

Korczak isn’t the best offensive player — he had two goals and 12 assists in 47 games his first American Hockey League season — but can make a sharp first pass.

The 2019 second-round pick made his NHL debut Feb. 2 against Buffalo and could put himself in position to play more games with a strong training camp.

Cassidy emphasizes a strong defensive system at five-on-five, which should play to Korczak’s strengths. The Knights also have an opening for a No. 4 defenseman on the right side with Dylan Coghlan going to Carolina.

“Obviously, main goal is to play here with the big club,” Korczak said. “That’s my main focus right now.”

2. Morozov, Cormier’s skills pop

While Korczak’s defense has impressed, a pair of Knights’ prospects offensive skills have stood out.

Defenseman Lukas Cormier’s wrist shot has given goaltenders plenty of problems. That’s not a shock with the 2020 third-round pick coming off back-to-back seasons as the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League defenseman of the year. His 33 goals in 2021-22 were the most by a QMJHL defenseman since 2005-06.

Cormier looks comfortable with the puck on his stick and scored a shootout goal in Thursday’s scrimmage. The 5-foot-10 blue liner still needs to improve defensively, but Viveiros complimented his strength Tuesday.

“I think I took a big step in my defensive game last year,” Cormier said. “That was a big focus for me and my coaching staff and the coaching staff here.”

Center Ivan Morozov has showcased an impressive shot and strong hands in drills. The 2018 second-round pick signed his entry-level contract with the Knights on April 26 after playing 72 Kontinental Hockey League games the last two seasons.

Morozov appeared in the Silver Knights’ final three games, recording one assist.

“Just play smart,” Morozov said of his goals for the camp through a translator, 2021 second-round pick Daniil Chayka. “Good passes, no turnovers, be smart on the ice.”

3. 2022 draft class has personality

Time will tell if the Knights’ 2022 draft class will make an impact on the ice. But they do seem like they’d be fun to have in a locker room.

Second-round pick Matyas Sapovaliv delivered one of the best lines of camp when he said the Las Vegas weather “punched me in my face” when he arrived. Third-round pick Jordan Gustafson tries to play acoustic guitar every day and loves Eric Clapton. He said his go-to song is Clapton’s “Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out.”

“I’m sure my family’s heard that a lot around the house,” Gustafson said.

Gustafson has had an energetic dinner companion throughout camp in sixth-round pick Ben Hemmerling, who he’s played with and against since their early days in Alberta.

Hemmerling was excited to return to Las Vegas after staying at the Golden Nugget for a youth tournament — “We were happy we got the slide that went through the shark tank. That’s all we cared about,” he said — and shared a funny story from draft day.

His agent was in Montreal and accidentally told Hemmerling he was picked before he could see it on TV.

“I just got a text message that was ‘Congrats,’” Hemmerling said. “Five seconds later I saw Vegas on the clock. I was like ‘OK, I think I’m going to Vegas’ and five seconds later I see my name. Pretty incredible.”

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