For first time, Golden Knights turn to their drafted rookies for depth

By Justin Emerson

Monday, Oct. 7, 2019 | 2 a.m.

When NHL teams talk about needing more than 23 players to get through a season and employing the “next-man-up” mentality, it’s often dripped with cliche. Every team says it. But two games into the Golden Knights’ season and they are already down three players who were expected to be regulars.

Depth has been a calling card for the franchise since its inception. But this time it is different, as the Golden Knights are turning to a source it previously hadn’t used: its own farm system.

“You give your young kids an opportunity to play and that’s really important that they get their foot in the door,” coach Gerard Gallant said. “I hate seeing guys getting injured, but it gives somebody else an opportunity to play in the NHL and some of the players we drafted and some of the kids that we got here as free agents, so it’s huge for us.”

Vegas has lost Cody Eakin, Alex Tuch and Nate Schmidt to injury, clearing the way for 20-year-old Cody Glass — the first draft pick in franchise history — to make the team. And score his first NHL goal last week in the season opener. Schmidt going down allowed Nic Hague, another 20-year-old, to make his debut Friday.

The fact that Glass and Hague are NHL-ready is a testament to the franchise’s amateur staff and the work it did in the 2017 draft. Glass was the sixth-overall pick and Hague went 34th overall, the third pick of the second round.

Two other Vegas first-rounders that year cracked opening night rosters: Erik Brannstrom (Senators) and Nick Suzuki (Canadiens).

“For all of us to get the chance opening night for our respective teams, it’s unbelievable,” Glass said.

Glass and Hague aren’t just here because they were high draft picks. Glass rolled through the junior Western hockey League and had 15 points in 22 playoff games once he joined AHL Chicago. Hague was in Chicago all year and had 32 points in his first season of professional hockey. They more than held their own in the Golden Knights' preseason to earn a significant role on a team with Stanley Cup aspirations.

“It’s a great opportunity for them. I’m so excited for those guys to get their first taste of the NHL,” veteran defenseman Jon Merrill said. “We all know what it’s like, those nerves, gripping your stick a little tight in your first one.”

No rookie has ever had a big role for the Golden Knights. In 2017-18, six rookies made their debut, most notably goalie Oscar Dansk. Last season, Jimmy Schuldt broke in during the last game of the regular season.

But none of the previous players were drafted by Vegas. Glass and Hague were, allowing the Golden Knights the same opportunity to dip into its own system like other teams have for years.

Glass and Hague are important pieces of the Golden Knights’ future. Turns out, they’re important pieces of the present, too.