Golden Knights rookie Cody Glass’ conditioning stint with the Wolves didn’t go the way he wanted Thursday at Allstate Arena.
Glass reinjured his right knee in the first period after receiving an open-ice check from Grand Rapids Griffins forward Michael Rasmussen. After struggling to skate to the bench, Glass didn’t return.
After the Wolves’ 3-2 loss, coach Rocky Thompson confirmed Glass hurt his knee, though he wasn’t sure of the severity.
“It’s tough on him,” Thompson said. “He works hard. . . . It’s not easy to go through [this], but he’s got a great attitude.”
This is the latest setback for Glass, who has spent as much time in the training room as he has on the ice this season. Glass missed eight games with a concussion in December and another 12 after suffering a knee injury last month. He also hurt his left knee last season with the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League.
“It kind of sucked,” Glass told the Sun-Times last week. “I was out with a concussion. Three games later, I’m playing really good hockey and I get injured again. You start to get a little bit down on yourself because it starts to happen too often.
“Last year, I had the exact same kind of injury and now I come back, kind of similar situation. But I think I handled it really well last year. I had the same mindset this year — just handle it with positivity and try and come back as strong as possible.”
Now, Glass will have to restart the healing process.
“I feel for him,” said forward Brandon Pirri, who scored the Wolves’ first goal 70 seconds into the game. “It’s unfortunate and he’s really a mature and talented kid, so it’s just a setback, but he’s got the right mindset and work ethic that he’s just gonna come back even better.”
At 20, Glass is the youngest player on the Golden Knights’ roster. Vegas expects him to be a future top-six forward, though the injuries have delayed his development. Glass, the Golden Knights’ first-ever draft pick, has five goals and seven assists in 39 NHL games.
Thompson believes Glass has a bright future ahead if he can stay healthy. He compared him to Golden Knights center Mark Stone, who played two years in the AHL before making the jump to the NHL.
“I see that same type of progression with Cody — not somebody who just jumps in and turns things on fire, he might be able to do that, but he might be somebody who takes a little bit of time because physically he needs to get a little bit stronger in areas,” Thompson said. “But his mind is an NHL elite mind.”
With Glass sidelined for the foreseeable future, the Wolves look to move on from the loss as they continue their pursuit of a playoff spot.
The Wolves are fourth in the Central Division with 55 points — just two points ahead of the Rockford Icehogs.
“Every loss, every point lost is painful and it hurts,” Thompson said. “You deal with that and we have to correct what we can and then [Friday] we’ll be ready for Milwaukee.”
