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Tag: Luca Sbisa Page 2 of 3

Golden Knights Injury Updates; James Neal, Reilly Smith, Malcolm Subban, Luca Sbisa, William Carrier, Oscar Lindberg

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On March 14, 2018

In Personnel

(Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)

James Neal
Injury: Hand/Wrist
Injured on February 26th vs. Kings

Neal has missed 10 of the last 11 games. He played in the Kings game on the road where he left after falling behind the goal, seemingly on the same hand that was injured last year in the playoffs.

He did not travel with the team on the recent five-game road trip, but was seen skating many of the days while the team was away. Neal participated in the most recent morning skate wearing a red no-contact jersey.

James is doing real good. He’s skating today. He’s not playing tonight but we’ll see him in the near future. -Gerard Gallant

Reilly Smith
Injury: Wrist/Shoulder
Injured on March 6th vs. Blue Jackets

Smith left the game after a hit in the 2nd period in Columbus. He remained on the road trip for a short time following the injury before returning to Vegas.

He has not participated in a practice since the injury but was seen putting on skates and pads to take the ice for an individual practice today.

A source indicated to SinBin.vegas that the team initially feared Smith had broken a bone in his hand that could have ended his season, but an MRI confirmed otherwise. The same source put the timeline at about two weeks from the injury following the news of no broken bones.

He is not playing tonight. Day to day. Getting better. -Gallant

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Erik Karlsson And Bobby Ryan React To Possibility Of Being Traded To Vegas

By

On March 3, 2018

In Personnel

“Our owner bought us a ping pong table. Yours wouldn’t even pay for an Uber ride.” -Probably Luca Sbisa

There were nothing but smiles in the visiting locker room last night at T-Mobile Arena. The Ottawa Senators battled for 60 minutes to beat the Golden Knights 5-4. The victory pushed the Senators to 22 wins and 52 points with just 19 games to play. That is, in a single word, bad. Which is probably why the Sens front office listened to any and all offers at the trade deadline. Including one from Vegas GM George McPhee, who inquired about their Norris winning defenseman.

That’s part of the business. I really didn’t know what really transpired or happened behind the scene. (The Golden Knights) were obviously one of the teams that was thrown out there a lot. They’re a good team and they were pushing for it, so nothing unexpected. -Erik Karlsson, OTT Captain

Karlsson was responding to a question I asked about his reaction when he heard about the Vegas chatter. The superstar Swede went on to discuss why free agents would seriously consider playing in Las Vegas.

It’s a great city and they have a great team. Their general manager McPhee, is a really good general manager and he’s been around for a long time. I think he’s going to build a good team, not only for now but the future as well. It’s definitely an attractive city. -Karlsson

Also rumored to be part of the Karlsson swap was Ottawa forward Bobby Ryan. Senators GM Pierre Dorion was attempting to unload Ryan’s $7.5M per season contract to whomever desired Karlsson. Possibly the reason why a deal with the Golden Knights fell through. I asked Ryan about his trade deadline anxiety.

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Luca Sbisa Hates Shootout

By

On February 23, 2018

In Personnel

Welcome to the SinBin.vegas Golden Knights Line Charts page. The goal of this page is to show not only the Golden Knights lines for every single game but also to show the utilization rate of each player and each position in the lineup.

“Player Utilization” shows what position that player is used most often.

“Line Utilization” shows which players play in each position most often.

“Game-by-Game Line Charts” are the lineup for each individual game.

Abbreviations: C1 = 1st line center, LW2 = 2nd line wing, 3R = 3rd pair right defenseman, HS = Healthy Scratch, INJ = Injured, SUSP = Suspended

Player Utilization Charts

 

Line Utilization Charts

 

Game-by-Game Line Charts

Game 4 at Washington

Marchessault-Karlsson-Smith
Pacioretty-Haula-Nosek
Lindberg-Eakin-Carpenter
Carrier-Bellemare-Reaves

Theodore-Engelland
McNabb-Miller
Merrill-Holden

Scratches: Bischoff, Hunt

Game 3 at Buffalo

Marchessault-Karlsson-Smith
Pacioretty-Stastny-Haula
Nosek-Lindberg-Carpenter
Carrier-Bellemare-Reaves

Theodore-Engelland
McNabb-Miller
Merrill-Holden

Scratches: Bischoff, Hunt

Game 2 at Minnesota

Marchessault-Karlsson-Smith
Pacioretty-Stastny-Haula
Nosek-Lindberg-Carpenter
Carrier-Bellemare-Reaves

Theodore-Engelland
McNabb-Miller
Merrill-Holden

Scratches: Bischoff, Hunt

Game 1 vs. Philadelphia

Marchessault-Karlsson-Smith
Pacioretty-Stastny-Haula
Nosek-Lindberg-Carpenter
Carrier-Bellemare-Reaves

Theodore-Engelland
McNabb-Miller
Merrill-Holden

Scratches: Bischoff, Hunt

______________________________________________________________________________

In this picture, Lehkonen is the metaphor for the shootout. (Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)

In 2010, Luca Sbisa competed in the Winter Olympic Games for Team Switzerland. Sbisa and his Swiss mates finished in 8th place at the Vancouver games. Switzerland played three games that went to overtime, winning two and losing one. Two of the three were decided by shootouts.

After Wednesday night’s Golden Knights victory over the Flames, some of the guys in the winning locker room turned on the epic Women’s hockey gold medal game.

I was getting changed, and OT just ended so I knew they were going to a shootout. I left. I didn’t want too see it. -Luca Sbisa

I had to ask Sbisa if he was kidding. He wasn’t.

It’s not fair, you battle so hard. Obviously, when you’re on the winning side it’s great but the other team is upset because they fought so hard. -Sbisa

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“I’m Not Too Scared Of Anybody”

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On February 22, 2018

In Game Analysis

Even when he’s bragging he’s humble. (Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)

Last night wasn’t the perfect game for the Golden Knights, rarely are they, but it was a game in which Vegas played its preferred style and pace and ended up running away with a 7-3 win.

Confidence is powerful in the game of hockey. Individually, it’s why a player like William Karlsson can go from 15 goals in 162 games to 31 in 60, or Ryan Carpenter can be waived in December and then go on a streak of six goals in nine games. As a team, it’s even more impactful as it breeds a belief that no matter the score or situation someone will step up and lead the team to victory.

We have confidence in this room that if we focus on ourselves and play 60 minutes, we can beat any team in this league. -Luca Sbisa

But sometimes ability doesn’t match the confidence in a locker room, and it turns a confident bunch into a frustrated one. It often happens when a team plays what they believe is a good game and do not come out on top. It takes away that feeling of invincibility great teams have.

If we play well, we will win.

That should be the belief in every locker room of every team, and it probably was at some point in the season, but as the year rolls along and that mantra doesn’t hold up, it chips away at a team’s confidence.

Then there’s the Golden Knights, who are probably the most confident team in the NHL. Why, because they’ve never experienced disbelief. When they play well, no matter who they play against, they’ve won. Not most of the time, every time. It hasn’t mattered where the games are played, who’s in the goal, or the talent on the other bench, if the Golden Knights play the way they are capable of, they will win the game, every time.

I don’t want to brag or anything but I’m really confident in our team. I like the way we’re playing right now. So yeah, I’m not too scared of anybody. -Marc-Andre Fleury

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Luca Sbisa Out 6-8 Weeks After Tearing Ligament In Hand

By

On January 10, 2018

In News

4th Golden Knight fight, 2nd Golden Knight injury. (Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)

According to a report out of Switzerland, Golden Knights defenseman Luca Sbisa will be out for the next 6-8 weeks after playing in just one game since returning from an ankle injury that kept him out the previous nine games.

The report indicates Sbisa tore a ligament in his left hand and had to undergo surgery to repair it. Sbisa was in a fight with John Hayden early in the 2nd period of Friday’s game in Chicago. During a majority of the fight Sbisa’s left hand is used to clutch Hayden’s jersey.

Following the five minutes in the penalty box, Sbisa did return to the ice to play three more shifts concluding the 2nd period. He did not return to the game in the 3rd and did not play in the Golden Knights last game against the New York Rangers.

The 6-8 week timeline would have Sbisa out until at least the middle of February. Expect a combination of Jon Merrill and Brad Hunt to fill in during his absense.

The Golden Knights have yet to place Sbisa on IR officially and have not yet confirmed nor denied the Swiss report. This article will be updated when they do.

UPDATE: The Golden Knights have sent out a press release confirming the news.

LUCA SBISA (D) ACTIVATED FROM IR; JON MERRILL (D) PLACED ON IR

By

On January 5, 2018

In Breaking News

The Golden Knights get Sbisa back after missing the previous nine games. Merrill has been placed on IR with an “undisclosed” injury. There is no timeline on Merrill’s return.

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The Unfortunate Part Of The Winning Streak

By

On January 2, 2018

In Game Analysis

The last time the Vegas Golden Knights lost a hockey game was on December 12th, 21 days ago. The last time they lost in regulation was December 1st, 31 days ago. That’s awesome news… unless you are a Golden Knights healthy scratch waiting for your chance to get back into the lineup.

It’s not done on a daily basis but I talked to some of those players a couple days ago and I talked to Sbisa today. They understand, they are true pros and that’s why our team has been so good. We have a bunch of good leaders and character guys. They all want to play, they are all ready to play. That’s the toughest decision I have to make every day. When you are winning games your players understand. It’s hard to go out there and say well we are going to switch it up. Sometimes you have to do that but right now the way things are going we are pretty comfortable with our lineup. Everybody understands, and that’s what I like about our team. They aren’t happy about it, but they understand. -Gerard Gallant

Winning streaks aren’t awesome for everybody. (Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)

Luca Sbisa got injured against Carolina (12/12), he hasn’t played since. Brad Hunt has been a healthy scratch in every game since the win at Dallas (12/9). William Carrier was hurt in Arizona (11/25) and he hasn’t come off the IR despite practicing every day for nearly a month, and Ryan Carpenter who was picked up on waivers on December 13th has yet to put on a Golden Knights jersey.

None of these decisions are because they are bad players. In fact, Hunt was playing great in his time in the lineup, Carrier played most games on the excellent “fourth” line, and Sbisa was a member of the top defensive pairing. It’s simply because the Golden Knights refuse to lose.

We don’t want them to lose though either. The boys are playing great and you understand it’s all part of it. You’ve got to be great teammates and make sure we are ready when we do get a chance. -Brad Hunt

Then there’s Carpenter. The Golden Knights went out of their way to claim him on waivers three weeks ago, yet he remains on the shelf waiting for that first opportunity.

Turk has talked to all of us but it’s pretty obvious in pro hockey, if you are winning and everyone is playing well you don’t change it up. If I were in the lineup and we were playing like that I wouldn’t want to be taken out. You are on the first place team in the division, so there’s absolutely no part of me that feels entitled to play. -Ryan Carpenter

The Golden Knights seven game winning streak did happen to begin the moment Carpenter walked in the building.

Do you think you deserve any credit for the winning streak? -SinBin.vegas

Absolutely not. -Carpenter

So here we are tonight, January 2nd, with another home game against the Nashville Predators and yet again, Hunt, Sbisa, Carrier, and Carpenter will sit out. It’s a small price to pay to keep up the winning ways, luckily they all seem to be just fine with it.

Gallant: “I Say Do What You Have To Do” At Deadline

By

On December 21, 2017

In Personnel

Tied for first place in the Western Conference, first place in the Pacific Division, and 46 points in 33 games have the Golden Knights securely entrenched in the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoff race.

This was not the plan.

VGK might be able to name their price on James Neal, but is it worth the risk of never knowing what could have been? (Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)

When George McPhee, Kelly McCrimmon, and the Golden Knights front office built this team their minds were on the future. They had a mandate from the most powerful man in the organization to reach the playoffs by year three and win the Cup by year six. To do it, they accumulated picks, made moves to bring in young unestablished talent, and thought the host of pending free agents would be able to bring a haul similar to the post Expansion Draft trade returns.

But now what?

Now the Golden Knights are winners, and their general manager has been on record time and time again saying he won’t “derail” the team’s success. But Vegas hasn’t exactly been in the business of giving away pieces for nothing. (Except for Shippy, but that’s a whole different story)

James Neal, Jonathan Marchessault, David Perron, and Luca Sbisa are all set to become unrestricted free agents when the season is over. The plan was to move at least a few of them to bring back even more future assets to the bushel of them Vegas has already compiled. However, this whole winning thing might just get in the way.

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GOLDEN KNIGHTS RECALL TOMAS HYKA (F), PLACE LUCA SBISA (D) ON IR

By

On December 18, 2017

In Breaking News

Luca Sbisa: Superstar Shadow

By

On October 24, 2017

In Game Analysis

The antidote. (Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)

It’s common in the NFL. Dez Bryant vs. Josh Norman, Julio Jones vs. Patrick Peterson, or Larry Fitzgerald vs. Richard Sherman. Top wide receiver vs. shut down cornerback.

Often times in the NHL teams have their defensive stalwarts, but not always are they asked to do what top cornerbacks in the NFL are expected to do. Here in Vegas, the Golden Knights have that, his name is Luca Sbisa, but we can’t go with the football term, so we’re dubbing him the “superstar shadow.”

Coach was pretty much saying every time he’s on the ice you’ve got to be out there. Wherever he lines up on the draw, make sure you are next to him. -Luca Sbisa

That was what Sbisa had to say about Vladamir Tarasenko, but he’s been doing it for a few games now. Look at his TOI numbers against the opposition’s scoring superstar the last three games.

OpponentTotal TOIPlayer ShadowedTOI vs. Shadow
St. Louis18:48Vladamir Tarasenko12:46
Buffalo21:00Evander Kane15:43
Boston19:07Brad Marchand13:33

That’s one of his roles. He plays against the top lines a lot and against the top players. That’s a role that he likes and he’s done a pretty good job of it. -Gerard Gallant

At even strength against those three top players, while Sbisa is on the ice, the Golden Knights have allowed just one goal in three games. Think about that for a second. 25 minutes and 51 seconds against Vladimir Tarasenko, Evander Kane, and Brad Marchand, and Luca Sbisa has held them to ONE even strength goal. That, is a recipe for success.

Next up is Patrick Kane and the Chicago Blackhawks. Normally this should give the Golden Knights nightmares, but with Luca Sbisa: Superstar Shadow on our side, Gerard Gallant and VGK fans can rest easy and start dreaming of a 7-1 start.

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