KARLSSON RETURNS TO COLUMBUS
Pierre-Edouard Bellemare is more bricklayer than sculptor. He makes his living doing the heavy lifting as a center iceman in the Golden Knights defensive zone. While Bellemare appreciates the goals, the flowing hair and the offensive flair, when he looks at William Karlsson - it's the so called little things which impress him most.
"It's what he does when he doesn't have the puck, when he is in our zone and when he is breaking the puck out which is so impressive," said Bellemare, when asked about his teammate. "He is a complete player."
Complete player. It's a phrase which has become cliché and over-used in hockey. Coaches attach it to players far too easily. And often it's used to prop up a player who is lacking in the offensive zone. By definition, complete must reflect a player who is as strong offensively as he is defensively.
William Karlsson is not half finished. He is indeed, complete.
The 25-year-old has 35 goals and 24 assists for 59 points which ranks 29th in the NHL. Only two players, Alex Ovehckin (40) and Evgeni Malkin (36) have more goals than Karlsson.
Karlsson ranks first in plus-minus at a plus 39. He's fourth in the league in takeaways with 65.
A smooth skater able to accelerate in an instant, Karlsson affects the game in so many ways. He's elite defensively and as a penalty killer. He drives offense with his speed and vision. Lots has been made about his shooting percentage which currently sits at 24 percent but even if it regresses in the future - he's still a No. 1 center whether he scores 40 goals or 25.
"(Karlsson) reminds me a lot of what Reilly Smith does on the ice. They play everywhere: PK and power play. They do everything right on the ice," said Jonathan Marchessault, who along with Smith plays on Karlsson's wing. "They don't cheat the game and they let the game come to them. I try to follow those two on the ice. I think he just finds a way to have good scoring chances. He's opportunistic right now. He's really a great player for us."
Karlsson's line is arguably the best in the NHL right now. They've played 674.83 minutes together at 5v5 which is the most in the league for any line. Their consistency has kept them together as Golden Knights head coach Gerard Gallant has never seen the need to break them up.
They lead the league in goals at 5v5 by a line with 46 and the next closest line has a combined 37 goals in 5v5 situations.
They also lead the league in goal differential at 5v5 - at a +25.
There are eight lines in the league that have played at least 500 minutes together. Of those 8, the Vegas line ranks second in CF% at 55.69%.
"I enjoyed my time here and I'm looking forward to the game. It should be fun," said Karlsson.
