Krepps: Golden Knights Laurent Brossoit Should Be Brought Up Soon

If the Vegas Golden Knights are going to bring up Laurent Brossoit from the AHL, now would be a perfect time. The Golden Knights are set to start a season-high seven-game, 22-day homestand which will take them through the majority of the month of Janurary. They start the homestand Thursday against the Pittsburgh Penguins at 7:00 p.m.

With the unfortunate injury to Robin Lehner and Brossoit also having off-season hip surgery, the Golden Knights have relied on rookie goaltender Logan Thompson and trade acquisition Adin Hill 40 games through the 2022-23 season. The duo has been strong, Thompson especially, but Hill's numbers are starting to slip. Brossoit, who was sent to the Henderson Silver Knights for a conditioning stint, is still in the AHL, awaiting an opportunity to come back to the pros.

In his last three games, Hill has had a save percentage of less than .900% and was pulled against the Anaheim Ducks on Dec. 28 after allowing two goals on five shots. After a sluggish start with the HSK, Brossoit has picked up his game as of late and now owns a .915 save percentage in the minors. With two shutouts, he was named the AHL player of the week for Dec. 12 to Dec. 18.

The Golden Knights have three capable NHL goaltenders, so moving one of them is a strong possibility. But given that Brossoit has not even played an NHL game yet this season, it makes sense for the VGK to give all goalies a fair look before they make their decision. And the upcoming homestand for the VGK gives them the perfect opportunity to do so.

With the Golden Knights home for about a month, it means no travel days, tons more practice, better access to facilities, and more. There are no back-to-back outings for the VGK this month, and Logan Thompson will also be getting some starts. But if there was a time to call up LB, it is now.

Upcoming VGK Schedule (All Games Home): 1/5 v Pittsburgh 7:00 p.m., 1/7 v Los Angeles 7:00 p.m., 1/12 v Florida 7:00 p.m., 1/14 v Edmonton 7:00 p.m., 1/16 v Dallas 3:00 p.m., 1/19 v Detroit 7:00 p.m., 1/21 v Washington 7:00 p.m.

The Silver Knights have a less favorable schedule with an away game tomorrow against the San Jose Barracuda at 7:00, which is game one of a three-game road trip. The HSK's January schedule switches back and forth between small road trips and homestands.

Another favorable, (yet unfortunate in how it happened) thing that the Golden Knights have at their disposal is cap space and active roster spots. With injuries to Jack Eichel, Brett Howden, Paul Cotter, Jonathan Marchessault, Pavel Dorofeyev, Daniil Miromanov, Shea Theodore, Alec Martinez, and Zach Whitecloud, both injured reserve (IR) and long-term injured reserve (LTIR) can be used for cap space purposes and roster management. However, the VGK would obviously be unable to dress all three of their goaltenders for a specific game.

A decision on who to keep and who to trade/waive will likely be made later on in the season. But for the Golden Knights, now seems like the perfect time to take a look at Laurent Brossoit.