Karlsson absence ‘tough hole to fill’ for Golden Knights in Game 6 of Stanley Cup Final

LAS VEGAS -- The Vegas Golden Knights will be without forward William Karlsson for their most important game of the season.

The forward was ruled out by coach John Tortorella for Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Carolina Hurricanes at T-Mobile Arena on Sunday (8 p.m. ET; ABC, SN, TVAS, CBC).

“No,” Tortorella said Saturday when asked if Karlsson was playing, adding he was not going to discuss his status beyond Game 6.

Vegas trails the best-of-7 series 3-2 and is looking to force a deciding Game 7 at Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Wednesday.

“It’s obviously a big miss, he’s done a lot of great things for us since coming back in the lineup,” Golden Knights forward Mitch Marner said. “But we’ve done this all year, we’ve had a lot of injuries throughout the year and throughout the playoffs. It obviously (stinks) losing Will, but it’s a next-man-up mentality. We just have to be ready to go.”

Karlsson appeared to sustain an injury to his left arm/wrist in Game 5 on Thursday from a hit by Carolina defenseman Sean Walker at 8:26 of the second period in a 4-2 loss. He skated to the bench and was attended to by the Golden Knights trainer before departing for the dressing room at the following stoppage.

“It’s obviously going to be a tough hole to fill in a way,” Marner said. “But at the same time, everyone on the ice has to do a better job defensively, helping out and making sure we’re doing offensively the things that we’ve been doing.”

Karlsson has nine points (three goals, six assists) in 15 playoff games. He was centering Vegas' second line for most of the postseason since returning from a lower-body injury in Game 1 of the Western Conference Second Round against the Anaheim Ducks on May 4.

The 33-year-old sustained the injury Nov. 8 and missed the remainder of the regular season. He had seven points (four goals, three assists) in 14 games.

“It’s always tough to lose somebody and ‘Karly’ after a grinding season, it’s tough to see stuff happen to him,” Golden Knights forward Tomas Hertl said. “It’s obviously a big loss, but we still have a good team, and we have to help each other and another guy has to step up and take more responsibility. It’s a tough loss, obviously we’d love to have him, but now we have to play without him, but we can definitely do it.”

Karlsson’s return was credited as a big reason for Vegas' success this postseason, defeating the Ducks in the second round before sweeping the Colorado Avalanche in the conference final. The Golden Knights defeated the Utah Mammoth in six games in the first round without Karlsson.

His return to center the second line allowed Marner to move over to play right wing where he and left wing Brett Howden developed great chemistry.

Marner leads the NHL with 29 points in the playoffs (10 goals, 19 assists), and Howden is first in goals with 14 (four assists, 18 points) in 21 games.

With Karlsson unavailable, Marner may need to move back to center, where he played the majority of the season but was not as effective offensively. He had 80 points (24 goals, 56 assists) in 81 games in his first season with the Golden Knights.

“We’ll see how it goes,” Marner said. “I think center-wise you just have to be a bit more patient with being in the right spot and helping out on the wall, especially in this series where we know we’re playing a team that really likes to pinch down on you to try to make it hard to get pucks out.

“If it comes to that, we just have to be more patiently defensive-wise, be in the right spot and just from there finding holes and making plays.”

Tortorella would not divulge who would be inserted into the lineup for Karlsson in Game 6, but the top two options are forwards Brandon Saad and Reilly Smith, who are both previous Stanley Cup winners.

“Will is one of our best players,” Vegas defenseman Jeremy Lauzon said. “He’s a veteran, a leader, but all year long we’ve had the next-man-up mentality. We have so much depth on this team. A guy like Smith, who might step into the lineup, is capable of making a difference."

Saad, 33, has two assists in five playoff games and has not played since Game 2 against Colorado on May 22. He won the Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2013 and 2015.

Smith, 35, has two assists in six playoff games and has not played since Game 6 against Utah on May 1. He won the Cup with Vegas in 2023.

“I had ‘Saader’ in Columbus; I think he’s played four or five games with me here since I’ve been here,” Tortorella said. “He can skate, protects the puck, he’s a good player.

“I’m not going to give you the lineup, but the minutes he’s giving me, he’s played well. But I have to make decisions with the others around as far as who the 20 (players) are going to be for tomorrow.”

Hertl is another option to play center, moving up from his current spot on left wing on the third line. He has 14 points (five goals, nine assists) in 21 playoff games.

“For me, it doesn’t really matter,” Hertl said. “It’s maybe more (of an adjustment) the other way because the last five years, I’ve played mostly center. When I play wing, I’m still taking face-offs, so I can kind of play both ways whenever I am. It’s not a big change for me because I think I can do both.”