The Los Angeles Kings take on the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday for their second preseason game in the Northern Hemisphere.
The group that traveled to Australia will not be available for Wednesday’s game, however, Brandt Clarke will be in the lineup and playing.
Clarke missed the Australia trip because of a shoulder injury but is now ready to return and fight for his roster spot again.
“Yeah, I’ll be playing tonight,” said Clarke. “I’m looking forward to it, I’ve been in LA for a month now and, obviously, I want to play in games and now I have the chance and I’m really excited about it.”
There won’t be any easing on for Clarke tonight either, he’s expected to play top-pairing and top power-play minutes for the Kings.
“I think that’s the plan,” said Clarke when asked if he’d play big minutes. “I don’t want to speak for the coaches but I think that’s the plan. I was practicing with the top unit and I think that’s the way we’re going to go tonight.
Ontario Reign assistant coach Chris Hajt also confirmed that Clarke will see a lot of ice.
“If he’s playing, he’s in,” said Hajt. “He’s healthy and we’re excited to have him in the lineup, real good player, obviously, he can transport the puck and is a great all-around player. Excited to see him play tonight.”
The puck drops at 7:00 PM in Vegas on NHL Network. If the game gets you in the Vegas mood, head over to gambling.com and use the promo codes linked.
The group that played in Australia still won’t be available for Wednesday game, however, they will be back on the ice Thursday and some players might feature in Friday’s game in San Diego.
More must-reads: