Vegas defenseman Brayden McNabb’s status for Game 3 is unclear after he took a puck to the face in Game 2, and the team’s lineup absorbed the shock by playing the rest of the match with only five defensemen.
RALEIGH, N.C. — Late in Game 2. Brayden McNabb caught an 87.3 mph slap shot from Nikolaj Ehlers squarely in the face just past the midway point of the first period. He dropped his stick. grabbed his nose. skated immediately off to the tunnel. and then the concern spread outward before the period even ended.
On Friday, Vegas coach John Tortorella had no update beyond confirming the 35-year-old was traveling home with the team. Game 3 is Saturday in Las Vegas, and McNabb’s availability remains uncertain.
“It’s a scary play,” forward Brett Howden said. ”You never want to see that. Just hope he’s doing all right.”
The Knights managed to finish the game with only five defensemen after McNabb’s exit, and the strain showed. Jeremy Lauzon ended up on the ice for all four Carolina goals. One of the Hurricanes’ scores included a shot banking in off Lauzon. Another goal came after he lost a one-on-one battle with William Carrier and Seth Jarvis’ overtime winner went past him.
Captain Mark Stone summed up the immediate impact in plain terms: “You lose a guy like Nabber who logs heavy minutes, such a good teammate, plays the game so hard, it’s tough,” Stone said. “They battled as hard as they could.”
McNabb’s injury came after a major personal high in Game 1. He was coming off the first three-assist performance of his NHL career. It was also a reminder of how much his role is built into Vegas’ identity. McNabb is one of three original Golden Knights players who have been with the franchise for its entire nine-year existence. and he is in the Stanley Cup Final for a third time.
“He’s a vital part of this team,” center William Karlsson said. “He’s been here for a long time and has been vital every year. I think he is extremely good defensively, helps us out in PK situations and stuff like that. Of course, tough to not have him for the remainder of that game.”
The Knights had already navigated a lineup shake-up earlier in the series. Their optimum, healthy lineup was back for the series opener when Lauzon returned from a puck-to-the-head injury that had sidelined him since the second round. That return didn’t last long in Game 2 either.
If McNabb can’t play, Vegas will likely turn to either Ben Hutton, a left-handed shooter, or Kaedan Korczak, who was playing in place of Lauzon. That choice will be shaped by how McNabb’s face injury holds up between now and Saturday’s game.
For a franchise that has relied on durability and continuity, the question hanging over the Golden Knights is the same one fans heard after the puck hit McNabb: not just whether he’s hurt, but whether he’ll be able to return in time to keep the team’s rhythm intact in the next swing of the Final.
Brayden McNabb Vegas Golden Knights Stanley Cup Final Game 2 injury Nikolaj Ehlers Mark Stone William Karlsson Jeremy Lauzon Brett Howden John Tortorella Game 3
That’s brutal. Hockey is so dangerous.
I don’t get why they didn’t just stop the game right away? Like once a guy gets hit in the face that hard, seems like they should have made it a bigger deal. Also five defensemen?? That sounds like coaching failure but I guess it’s just what happens.
Wait so he got hit and then they still played the whole rest of the period with only five guys on defense? That’s insane. No update except he’s traveling home, like okay but how bad is it?? Probably concussion or broken nose… scary either way. Hope Mark Stone is right and it’s nothing too serious.
87.3 mph slap shot to the face is wild. I heard Ehlers was like, intentionally aiming high? could’ve just been bad luck but fans always assume stuff like that. If McNabb can’t go for Game 3 then Vegas is basically cooked, because their whole defense identity is him or whatever. Also “puck banking in off Lauzon” sounds like a curse lol.