Kaedan Korczak made his season debut in the Vegas Golden Knights’ 6-1 win over the Los Angeles Kings but will be a healthy scratch with Shea Theodore returning from his illness.
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The 23-year-old stepped in for Theodore and played alongside Brayden McNabb recording an assist, two hits, and three blocks in 17:22. He played the least out of any of the six Golden Knights defensemen but posted strong results in those minutes.
Staying patient and waiting for your opportunity is difficult, especially when you consider yourself NHL-ready like Korczak does. He’s paid his dues in the AHL and has accumulated some NHL experience already. The next step for him is to become a regular in the NHL before attempting to carve out a larger role.
While waiting Korczak has developed a stay-ready mindset, something his teammate Ben Hutton has done all his career and done very well during his tenure with the Golden Knights.
“It’s part of the business now for where I am in my career,” Korczak said. “I just got to keep going.”
Tuesday’s game against the Kings was Korczak’s 38th career game. In those games, he’s recorded a goal and 12 points while averaging 16:38 of time on ice. Korczak attributed some of his success to how easy it is to play with McNabb, stating that he’s very vocal and that he makes him feel confident but HC Bruce Cassidy was quick to praise the Yorkton, Saskatchewan native.
“Other teams don’t care. They’re coming at you 100 miles an hour,” Cassidy said. “So you have to find a way to stay mentally sharp. That’s a little bit on you physically, and it’s on (coaches) to make sure you get the reps in practice. It’s not a switch you can turn on and off. That’s the challenge for the younger guys. It’s why a lot of teams don’t like having a younger guy in that position. But at the end of the day, (Korczak) requires waivers, and he’s a valuable piece. There’s a little bit of that trade-off that he’s going to have to meet us halfway with the coaching piece versus his mental preparation every day. I thought (Korczak) played well as the game went along. Good for us to have depth there.”
At this stage in his career, Korczak would like to be playing every night but the situation he’s in, calls for his patience. The Golden Knights just handed Theodore a seven-year extension that will see him be paid $7.425M annually. The Golden Knights have Theodore, Noah Hanifin, Alex Pietrangelo and Zach Whitecloud locked up for the foreseeable future but McNabb and Nicolas Hague are in need of contracts. Based on the salary cap, the Golden Knights may have to move on from one of those defenders opening a spot for Korczak.
If he continues to step into the lineup when needed and do his job effectively, a larger role with the Golden Knights could be in his future.
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Related: Golden Knights’ Shea Theodore Out Due To Illness; Kaedan Korczak To Make Season Debut Against The Kings
Related: BREAKING: Golden Knights Sign Shea Theodore To Seven-Year Extension
