The Vegas Golden Knights simply can’t get healthy as a team, and that won’t change anytime soon. Left winger Max Pacioretty, out since March 11 with an undisclosed injury, had been listed as a game-time decision for Thursday's game against the Nashville Predators and didn’t dress. On Friday, Golden Knights coach Pete DeBoer revealed Pacioretty suffered a setback and “is not available in the near future,” as reported by Danny Webster of The Las Vegas Sun:
Pacioretty, 33, has endured a cursed 2021-22 season. He missed 17 games in the fall due to a broken foot and 10 more games into late January due to wrist surgery. He’s been plenty effective in his first-line left winger role when in the lineup, piling up 15 goals and 29 points in 29 games.
The only possible “blessing” about the Pacioretty news: it removes one tough decision on activating a player from LTIR. With Monday’s Evgenii Dadonov trade voided, the Golden Knights didn’t have the cap space to activate Alec Martinez, Mark Stone or Pacioretty. With Pacioretty still not healthy, GM Kelly McCrimmon can delay the decision, perhaps until he finds a new taker for a Dadonov trade. Reminder: trades can still happen post deadline, but players dealt after the deadline are ineligible for the playoffs.
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