- Noah Hanifin and Brayden McNabb both skipped Monday’s Golden Knights practice
- McNabb has worn a full cage since taking an 87 mph puck to the face in Game 2
- Read below for what the absences could mean for Vegas in Game 4
Two of the Golden Knights’ top defensemen were missing from the ice Monday, one day before Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final.
Noah Hanifin and Brayden McNabb both sat out Vegas practice, according to SinBin.vegas. Neither absence came with an explanation, and a skipped session doesn’t automatically rule either guy out for Tuesday.
Both names carry weight for a team that just grabbed a 2-1 series lead.
McNabb has been playing hurt. He took an 87 mph slap shot from Nikolaj Ehlers to the face in Game 2 and has worn a full cage ever since.
The cage didn’t slow him down. McNabb logged the second-most ice time on the team in Game 3 and put up two assists, including one on Shea Theodore’s double-overtime winner.
Shea Theodore spoke about what his partner has pushed through:
Game 3 went into the record books. Mitch Marner ripped the fastest hat trick in Stanley Cup Final history and Vegas built a 4-0 lead.
Then it nearly came undone. Carolina scored three times in 39 seconds, the quickest such stretch in Final history, and forced overtime before Theodore ended it at 5:38 of the second extra period.
Here’s another look at all five Vegas goals from that night:
Hanifin gives Vegas another 23-plus minutes a night on the back end. The former Hurricane has seven assists through 19 playoff games and draws Carolina’s top forwards most shifts.
Game 4 goes Tuesday at T-Mobile Arena. If either defenseman can’t dress, the Knights will have to reshuffle a blue line that’s carried them within two wins of the Cup.
