The no-look feed across the zone to hit Amadio in stride was impressive. Karlsson’s strong skating and hockey IQ, which make him such a weapon without the puck, also help him with it - like on this beautiful setup for Amadio’s goal in the first period on Wednesday. In these playoffs, he’s already scored four goals and has at least a point in five of Vegas’ six playoff games. The offensive side of Karlsson’s game isn’t as consistent, but when it’s going he’s tough to stop. It’s why coaches rely on him so heavily in defensive situations. Those parts of Karlsson’s game never waver. I think we were dictating most of the game, and if we could keep it that way it would be great.” I think overall we played a pretty good game. “I think we did that with a great start, and just kind of continued that. “If we have the chance to dictate, we’re going to take it,” Karlsson said after the game. In the end, that shift will go largely unnoticed, but replicating those types of plays over an entire hockey game is how to limit players like McDavid and Draisaitl. That entire sequence lasted only 29 seconds, and Karlsson made four different defensive plays to thwart a potential Oilers attack. Midway through the second period, Karlsson played a shift in his defensive zone facing both McDavid and Draisaitl that was a perfect example of how he plays winning hockey. Karly is one of those guys that is always willing to play on the right side of the puck first, and that’s what makes him special.” There’s lots of guys who can skate and are big, but just for whatever reason would rather play on the other side of the puck. ![]() “He has a good stick, and the last part is commitment. His legs and his hockey IQ allows him to cover a lot of ice,” Cassidy said. These plays don’t jump off the ice as overly impressive, but over the course of a game, they add up. Even at the end of the clip, when Theodore challenges Yamamoto for a loose puck, Karlsson is the last man back to prevent any potential rush chance if Theodore loses that battle cleanly. The Oilers hadn’t recorded a shot on goal in nearly 11 minutes at that point and Karlsson’s line was on the ice against McDavid.Īfter some fancy stick-handling, Michael Amadio eventually lost the puck, but Karlsson swooped in with perfect body positioning to win it right back. Take this shift late in the first period, for example. Playing big minutes against two of the best offensive talents in hockey requires dozens of small plays that lead to extended possession in the offensive zone, and less time spent defending. The closer you examine his game, the more impressive the details of each shift become. While Karlsson is certainly capable of making highlight-reel plays, most of his work is done in the shadows. He’s consistently one of the Golden Knights’ best defenders, and was again in Game 1 of their second-round series against the Oilers. Karlsson has earned the comparison, though. That’s high praise from someone who coached Bergeron - widely accepted as the best defensive forward in the league for the last decade - for six seasons in Boston. He’s got a good stick and he’s physical when he needs to (be).” Bergy’s not the biggest guy either, but he finds ways to get over the top of people. “I’ll compare him to (Patrice) Bergeron because I believe Karly is in that category of defensive centers. “He’s not as big as Draisaitl or McDavid, but he finds ways to check,” Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said. The player Karlsson played the second-most minutes against? Connor McDavid, who was also held in check during his seven minutes, 46 seconds, facing Karlsson. Karlsson faced Draisaitl more than any other Oiler on Wednesday night, sharing the ice for 8:04, and managed to hold him off the scoresheet during that time. I was expecting it, and they were really nice about it, so that's cool, but it's still not fun squirming while people point out your flaws.On the nine shifts in which Draisaitl faced Karlsson, he scored zero. (Shorts to the knee, no capri pants, no mid-riff revealing, blah blah blah blah blah!!) fuckers. Interesting morning- I left my lights on, and killed the battery. I am such a fuckin putz. Sorry to all the peeps who were counting on me to be there, and I didn't show. Missed, not only the car wash, but the 6-pockets billard tourny. ![]() And for the second time this week, I fell asleep for 4 FREAKIN hours. I ended up wearing a black bikini top with shorts to the Krush Kar Wash- but I showed up on Sunday as opposed to Saturday cause I went home after the BO show to change and take a 10 minute nap.
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