Status uncertain for Knights center ahead of road trip

Don’t get Tomas Hertl wrong. He thinks it’s cool that he hit the 30-goal mark for the third time.

The last time it happened was with the San Jose Sharks in the 2021-22 season. That was during an ongoing rebuild while fluttering near the bottom of the standings.

It’s different while on a contender, and Hertl has given the Golden Knights a reason to believe. No one has scored more goals (21) than Hertl since Jan. 7 after scoring his 31st Sunday in a 4-2 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning at T-Mobile Arena.

“It’s always nice to score 30 goals. It’s a big number,” the center said after recording his second hat trick of the season Saturday against the Detroit Red Wings. “It’s a cool moment. It’s nice to be hot, but I’d rather be hotter in three weeks.”

That is, if Hertl is available in three weeks.

Hertl left Sunday’s game with 5:49 remaining after crashing into the boards on a hit from defenseman Emil Lilleberg.

Hertl had a breakaway chance stopped by goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy when Lilleberg pushed Hertl from behind into the corner, shoulder first. He did not return.

Lilleberg received a five-minute major penalty for boarding that was reduced to a minor after review.

General manager Kelly McCrimmon said on the Knights’ radio show Monday that Hertl did not travel with the team for its three-game road trip, which begins Tuesday against the Minnesota Wild.

Hertl will continue to undergo testing in Las Vegas to determine the severity of his injury.

Major impact

The timing couldn’t have been more inopportune for the Knights.

They had just started to turn the corner with their health. Center William Karlsson returned to the lineup Thursday after missing 20 games with a lower-body injury, and defenseman Shea Theodore is getting closer to a return after breaking his wrist during the 4 Nations Face-Off.

McCrimmon said Monday that Theodore is likely to return at some point this week. The Knights, in addition to their matchup with the Wild on Tuesday, play the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday and the Nashville Predators on Saturday.

Suddenly, the team could be heading into the final 12 games of the regular season — in the midst of a tight Pacific Division race — without its leading goal scorer.

Hertl has been everything the Knights could have hoped for.

He’s become the engine on the second-best power play in the NHL (29.7 percent). Only the Winnipeg Jets (30.1) have a better mark on the man advantage.

Hertl’s 14 goals on the power play are already a Knights record.

But since Jan. 7, Hertl has been effective in every situation. Of his 21 goals, 14 have come at even strength with seven coming on the power play.

“He’s playing some of his best hockey he’s probably played in his career, never mind with us,” coach Bruce Cassidy said.

Goals everywhere

Cassidy has talked about finding complementary pairs within his forward group. He’s found that on the second line with Hertl and right wing Pavel Dorofeyev, who hit the 30-goal mark himself Thursday against the Boston Bruins.

Both are lethal on the power play with a combined 26 goals. No other Knights skater is in double figures.

But the Knights have outscored opponents 20-14 with Hertl and Dorofeyev on the ice at five-on-five since the turn of the calendar year.

The addition of Brandon Saad to that line has been a boost. The three have combined for 29 points since being put together March 2 against the New Jersey Devils.

“We complement each other,” Hertl said. “With (Saad), I played a lot of games against him. I didn’t know he was actually that fast. He’s a great skater. Pav, he obviously likes to shoot. We have to just keep doing it and keep getting better.”

Next man up

If Hertl is unavailable, Cole Schwindt would likely draw back into the lineup and move each center up a line. That would move Karlsson up with Saad and Dorofeyev.

Nicolas Roy would likely go up with left wing Brett Howden and right wing Reilly Smith.

The center depth is one of the Knights’ strong points. They’re still strong, even without Hertl.

It’s just a tall task to suddenly replace Hertl’s 31 goals while playing the best hockey of his career.

“We’ve got other players in the lineup if he’s going to miss time that we’ll insert,” Cassidy said.

Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.