Knights preview: Lauzon to miss Rangers game, join growing injury list

Injuries keep piling up for the Golden Knights.

Defenseman Jeremy Lauzon will miss Tuesday’s game against the New York Rangers after suffering an undisclosed injury in Saturday’s win over the St. Louis Blues.

Defenseman Ben Hutton filled in for Lauzon in the Knights’ overtime loss to the Minnesota Wild on Sunday.

“I don’t know how long (Lauzon will) be out, but he’s not in tonight,” coach Bruce Cassidy said.

Lauzon, who was acquired as part of the trade that sent defenseman Nic Hague to the Nashville Predators in the offseason, joins a growing Knights injury list that already includes captain Mark Stone (wrist), center William Karlsson (lower body) and goaltender Adin Hill (lower body).

Stone, Karlsson and Hill are all considered week to week.

Lauzon was placed on injured reserve Tuesday, meaning he will also miss the Knights’ next two games on Thursday and Saturday. Center Tanner Laczynski was called up from Henderson in a corresponding move.

The Knights (8-4-6) enter Tuesday one point back of the Seattle Kraken for third place in the Pacific Division.

Lauzon, 28, has brought physicality to the lineup. He leads the Knights with 57 hits in 17 games.

He’s struggled to stay out of the box, however. Lauzon’s 28 penalty minutes are tied for the 15th-most in the NHL.

His partner Kaedan Korczak will move up the lineup and skate with defenseman Noah Hanifin on Tuesday. Defenseman Zach Whitecloud will skate with Hutton on the third pair.

Hutton will make his 12th appearance this season after playing just 11 games last year.

“Obviously any time your number’s on the board to get in the lineup, it always feels good,” Hutton said.

Goaltender Akira Schmid, coming off a 22-save effort in St. Louis, will start for the Knights. The goaltender is 7-1-2 with a .900 save percentage and 2.50 goals-against average this season.

Igor Shesterkin will start for the Rangers (10-8-2). Shesterkin, the 2022 Vezina Trophy winner, is 7-6-2 with a .913 save percentage and 2.39 goals-against average this season. New York is a league-best 9-1-1 on the road but is just 1-7-1 at Madison Square Garden.

“It’s an odd discrepancy,” Cassidy said of the Rangers. “It’s sometimes a small sample size, maybe right now, but I’m looking at the team that’s dominating on the road. Good goaltending every night, so you got to stick with your offensive principles and second chances, third chances when the goaltender’s making the first save.”

Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.