Las Vegas Sun

March 18, 2024

Next man up: In minors last week, Golden Knights goalie Dansk to face Chicago

Oscar Dansk

AP Photo / Jack Dempsey

Las Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Oscar Dansk makes a save during warm-ups before the start of a preseason hockey game between the Colorado Avalanche and the Las Vegas Golden Knights Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2017, in Denver.

Golden Knights rookie goalie Oscar Dansk dreamed of playing his first NHL game since he was a child.

Saturday night it became a reality, but under much different circumstances than he had imagined.

Leading the St. Louis Blues 2-1 with nine minutes to play, the Golden Knights lost their second goalie in four games to injury when Malcolm Subban fell to his knees in pain. Subban was playing the best game of his brief NHL career, with 27 saves, prior to injuring his leg while stretching to make a save.

As Subban was helped off the ice, Dansk had only minutes to prepare before his NHL debut. He’ll play his second game at 7 p.m. tonight when Vegas hosts the Chicago Blackhawks.

“It was surreal and I didn’t know what to think,” Dansk said. “There were a million thoughts going through my head but I tried to block those out and enjoy the moment.”

The first shot Dansk faced was a point-blank slap shot by Blues’ captain Alex Pietrangelo that went by him to tie the game. But Dansk kept his composure and survived the final minutes of regulation to send the game into overtime.

There, the 23-year-old stopped all five St. Louis shots in overtime and William Karlsson sealed the Golden Knights win with a goal on the other end.

“It was awesome,” Dansk said. “It was a fun overtime and both teams had chances but I’m just glad we got the win.”

The Golden Knights have had exceptional goaltender play this year no matter who is in the game. They are third in the NHL in goals allowed despite facing the ninth most shots.

Dansk was drafted by Columbus with the 31st overall pick in 2012, but never played for the Blue Jackets. He spent one season bouncing back and forth from the American Hockey League to the East Coast Hockey League before returning to his home country of Sweden.

There he played two seasons with Rogle BK of the Swedish Hockey League, posting a .907 save percentage and a 2.80 goals against average. In July, the Golden Knights signed him to a one-year deal worth $650,000.

“I got this opportunity to sign with Vegas and I didn’t hesitate one bit,” Dansk said. “It’s a tremendous honor to get the opportunity and I’m just trying to make the most of it.”

Dansk may be the Golden Knights netminder for an extended time. Subban was put on the injured reserve and is expected to be out approximately four weeks. Marc-Andre Fleury, who suffered a concussion Oct. 13, still has no timetable for return.

“(He won’t return) this week, but I think he’s getting better every day,” coach Gerard Gallant said about Fleury. “He’s on IR, but we don’t expect it to be long term. It’s how he’s feeling every day and he’s doing better every day. He’s going through the program and he’s doing reasonably well from what I hear. Once he gets back on the ice he’s probably four to five days away.”

That’s an encouraging update on Fleury’s status, but until he returns the Golden Knights will be counting on Dansk and Maxime Lagace, who was called up from the Chicago Wolves on Monday and also has never seen NHL action.

“The NHL is obviously the best league in the world and it’s fast,” Dansk said. “Obviously I have to be fast too, so that’s the biggest part of it.”

Depending on the length of Fleury’s absence, Dansk and Lagace are expected to split games in goal similarly to their situation in the AHL prior to being called up.

“They are new goalies to our organization obviously, so whoever plays the best will go out there,” Gallant said.

Dansk admitted practice and preparation have changed since becoming the starting goalie. The biggest difference is goalie coach Dave Prior is constantly in his ear.

“He’s on me quite a bit,” Dansk said. “Today he was on me a lot and that’s good. Those details that you can maybe cheat on at lower levels, but here if you cheat on them you’re going to get scored on. As soon as I don’t do it he’ll tell me.”

The Golden Knights host Chicago tonight and the Colorado Avalanche Friday before heading to the East Coast for a six-game road trip. In a matter of days Dansk went from riding the bench in the AHL, to playing backstop for one of the hottest teams in the NHL.

“It’s a tremendous honor really,” Dansk said. “It’s something you dream about, so for it to come true it’s quite surreal.”

Jesse Granger can be reached at 702-259-8814 or [email protected]. Follow Jesse on Twitter at twitter.com/JesseGranger_.

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