NHL insider provides an update on Carter Hart’s Golden Knights debut

The Vegas Golden Knights are set to give goaltender Carter Hart his season debut on Tuesday against the Chicago Blackhawks. It will be his first game in 22 months, during which he was one of the five primary accused in the Canadian Hockey sexual assault trial.

Hart, alongside Dillon Dubé, Michael McLeod, Cal Foote, and Alex Formenton, was acquitted by the Ontario Superior Court in July this year. The players were suspended by the league in an understanding with the NHL Players Association till December 1 and could only sign contracts after October 15.

The day after he became eligible, Hart signed a professional tryout with the Golden Knights, which was followed by a two-year $4 million contract with the team on October 24. He was the only player out of the five accused to sign a contract with an NHL team.

According to NHL insider Kevin Weekes, writing on his X account on Sunday, Hart will be netminding for Vegas during their home game against the Blackhawks.

"Per sources, I’m told G Carter Hart is likely to make his debut start and return to NHL action with Golden Knights this coming Tuesday night," Weekes wrote.

Hart was called up by the Knights from their AHL affiliate, Henderson Silver Knights, where he spent the last month getting into shape for his NHL debut. He played three games for the Silver Knights, conceding nine goals on 47 shots and posting a 3.07 goals-against average (GAA) and a .839 save percentage (SV%) with a 1-2-0 record.

Carl Lindbom assigned to the AHL to make space for Carter Hart

Carter Hart's promotion to the big leagues comes at the cost of the Knights' backup goalie Carl Lindbom, who was part of the goaltending tandem alongside Akira Schmid after the team's primary goaltender, Adin Hill, got injured on October 20 in a game against the Carolina Hurricanes.

Schmid has a 9-2-4 record with a 2.51 GAA and a .896 SV% in 15 games for the Knights this season. Meanwhile, Lindbom posted a 3.14 GAA and a .870 SV% in seven starts. Hart is expected to do better than the latter if he wants to remain playing in the NHL after Hill returns from injury.

Hart had played 227 games for the Philadelphia Flyers since his NHL debut in 2018, where he recorded a 96-93-29 record with a 2.94 GAA and a .906 SV%.