William Karlsson appears to be on his way to the Vegas Golden Knights.
The league’s 31st club has made Karlsson its selection from the Columbus Blue Jackets, formally concluding months of speculation, mock drafts and hypotheticals, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, who had the news on Karlsson's selection earlier today.
Hear CLB player is indeed William Karlsson. FLA appears to be Jonathan Marchessault. LV has also apparently acquired a haul of draft picks.
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) June 21, 2017
Losing Karlsson is a tough one for the Blue Jackets, who assembled a solid stable of centers last season en route to a 108-point campaign and a third-place finish in the vaunted Metropolitan Division. Karlsson earned the trust of coach John Tortorella to play in multiple situations, and he will likely be given the same responsibility under Golden Knights head coach Gerard Gallant.
He’s a durable guy, too; in 81 games with the Blue Jackets this past season, Karlsson scored six goals and added 19 assists while finishing with a +10 rating. His career high in goals (9) came in 2015-16 with Columbus.
And, in case you’re wondering: Karlsson signed a two-year contract with the Blue Jackets last summer that will carry over to Vegas. He will earn $1 million in 2017-18, the final year of his contract, before becoming a restricted free agent next July.
Karlsson, who turned 24 in January, came into his own with the Blue Jackets after beginning his career in the Anaheim Ducks organization. He joined Columbus in a deal that saw James Wisniewski traded to the Ducks prior the 2015 NHL trading deadline.
Not known as a prolific offensive player but more of a reliable two-way presence, Karlsson anchored the Blue Jackets’ No. 1 penalty killing rotation last season and, at even strength, saw most of his ice time with Matt Calvert and Josh Anderson – ironically, two other players who were heavily rumored to be in the mix for selection by the Golden Knights.
A second-round pick of the Ducks (53rd overall) in 2011, Karlsson made his NHL debut on Oct. 11, 2014. Two days later, he scored the first two goals of his career in a game against the Buffalo Sabres.
Now, with Karlsson removed from the depth chart, the Blue Jackets will either look within – candidates like Pierre-Luc Dubois and Lukas Sedlak come to mind – or explore external options to fill the void of Karlsson’s departure.
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