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It took Oscar Lindberg until his ninth game of the season to get on the scoresheet for the Golden Knights. But he had two assists Dec. 4, a goal Saturday and an assist Sunday, and just like that, things are suddenly looking up for the 27-year-old from Sweden.
Those four points in the four games since receiving regular ice time could mean Lindberg is the answer on the Golden Knights’ third line.
“The whole line has been playing pretty good and we’ve been capitalizing on our chances,” Lindberg said. “Being able to build on it and get better every game, I think it’s good for confidence.”
Lindberg played sporadically during the season’s first two months as the Golden Knights tried to find consistency on the third line alongside Tomas Nosek and Ryan Carpenter. Tomas Hyka had his chances, as did Daniel Carr. Vegas called up Reid Duke, but he never got into a game before returning to the AHL on Monday.
Lindberg got his chance last Tuesday against the Washington Capitals filling in for a hobbled Max Pacioretty and made his mark with a pair of helpers. Once Pacioretty came back, Lindberg slid to the third line, and was the Golden Knights’ only goal-scorer against the Kings on Saturday. He then assisted on Carpenter’s first goal on Sunday.
“He’s a really good player and he has a lot of offensive instinct,” Carpenter said. “He works really hard, so I feel like he creates a lot of space and has a lot of poise with the puck.”
Complicating things is the imminent return of center Paul Stastny, who coach Gerard Gallant said is hopeful to be back in the lineup on this road trip, which begins Wednesday. Where Stastny plays is anyone’s guess, but it means someone will see a drop in ice time, and it figures to come from the third line.
As the line’s center, Nosek seems like the easy choice to disrupt the lineup the least. But it would be just as easy to bench Carpenter or Lindberg and slide Nosek over to the wing, especially considering Nosek’s penalty-kill prowess.
Right now, the Golden Knights aren’t worrying about Stastny or who plays where. Right now the line is playing as well as it has all year, and part of that is due to the newest addition to the trio.
“I like the way they’re playing, they give you confidence out there and that’s what we need from our team,” Gallant said after Sunday’s game. “If we’re going to be successful, it’s everybody going every night. I thought we got that tonight and that line has been real good for us lately.”
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