“Coach’s Dream” William Karlsson Does It All For Golden Knights In Had To Have It Game 3

The headlines from Game 3 will all focus on Reilly Smith, Leon Draisaitl, and the improbable 0.4 seconds left on the clock, and for great reason. But the real story of Game 3, including the game-winning goal at the death, was Vegas’ best player on the night, William Karlsson.

In a game in which the Golden Knights were without their captain for the second two periods, faced an 0-2 deficit in the game and the series, and weren’t getting massive contributions from a large number of forwards, the man who became a folk hero after his Stanley Cup parade speech turned in one of the best performances of his NHL career.

Unreal. (Karlsson’s) such a complete player. He’s good with the puck, he’s good offensively, he’s so smart, he’s a great skater and he works super hard. He’s a huge part of this team and he played great tonight. -Noah Hanifin

Karlsson’s impact on the game began even before the puck was dropped. Without last change, Bruce Cassidy decided to start Karlsson along with Brett Howden and Reilly Smith to force the Oilers to show their hand early on the matchup against Draisaitl and McDavid. Edmonton’s head coach responded in the same way his predecessor did two years ago, holding back his superstars to avoid VGK’s shutdown center.

The matchup avoidance continued to wreak havoc on the Oilers all night as Edmonton took apart their stars for the first time in the series and still found Draisaitl sharing the ice with Karlsson for 7:19 and McDavid for 4:03 of even-strength time. In those minutes, Karlsson and his linemates posted two goals, the go-ahead goal in the second and the game-winning at the end, they did not allow a single shot on goal, and the Oilers managed just one high-danger chance in Karlsson’s 16:21.

His value goes up when you get on the road. He’s a really good player against top skill. So we want to use him against McDavid or Draisaitl or both depending on how they are deployed. So he’s kind of getting move around a little bit but he knows that’s a big part of his job to help with that part of the game, to check well, to be above people but it never seems to take away from his offense. -Bruce Cassidy

Shift after shift, when Karlsson’s time on the ice was done, the Golden Knights were in a better place than when he stepped over the boards in the first place.

It’s not just tonight, it’s all the time. He does such a good job of just bringing the same game every single night and it’s been that way ever since I started playing with him. -Smith

After battling through a season of injuries leading to the worst statistical numbers of his VGK career, and finishing up the previous postseason with a disappointing showing, Game 3 was vintage William Karlsson. That’s the guy who scored 43 goals in a season. That’s the guy who won the Lady Byng and finished 6th in Selke (which was ridiculously low). That’s the guy who through three coaches has always drawn the toughest assignments, has always played in all situations, and is always top of mind when a big shift is needed.

He’s just a big piece of the puzzle for us, very reliable guy. Coach’s dream. -Cassidy

He’s a teammate’s dream. He’s a fan’s dream.

And last night, he was Edmonton’s nightmare.