Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury has been placed on the NHL's COVID-19 protocols list. As a result, Fleury will likely miss at least Friday and Saturday's games against the St. Louis Blues.
On a daily basis, the league releases a list of players that have been placed in COVID-19 protocols and Fleury appeared on that list. Edmonton Oilers forward Kyle Turris, Los Angeles Kings goaltender Cal Petersen, New Jersey Devils defenseman Will Butcher, and San Jose Sharks forward Marcus Sorensen were also on Thursday's list.
Even if players appear on the NHL's COVID-19 protocols list, it doesn't mean that they tested positive. Players could be on the list for contact tracing, an unconfirmed test result, or having COVID-19 symptoms.
Fleury is the third Vegas player to be placed on the protocols list along while defenseman Alex Pietrangelo and forward Tomas Nosek. Nosek actually tested positive for the virus earlier this season in addition to a member of the team's coaching staff.
Fleury most recently played in Wednesday's 4-3 loss against the Minnesota Wild. In the defeat, the Vegas net-minder stopped 25 of the 29 shots he faced, but was pulled from the game in favor of rookie backup Logan Thompson.
With the Golden Knights slated to face the Blues in a back-to-back, the team's goaltenders are a huge question mark. Fleury had started 13 of Vegas' past 14 games and accumulated a 12-5-0 record to go along with a 1.73 goals-against-average throughout the 2021 season.
Goaltender Robin Lehner, who signed a five-year, $25 million deal to remain with the Golden Knights in the offseason, is currently dealing with an upper body injury and hasn't played since Feb. 7. Lehner was assigned to the team's AHL affiliate Henderson on a conditioning assignment earlier this week.
Aside from Fleury and Lehner, Oscar Dansk is the only other goalie to start for the Golden Knights this season. During Wednesday's loss to the Wild, Thompson played eight minutes in relief of Fleury late in the third period. Dansk and Thompson have played a combined seven games during their respective NHL careers.
The Golden Knights had an off day on Thursday and it's currently unclear which goaltenders will be active for Friday's game against the Blues. The Blues and Golden Knights are currently only separated by one point in the West Division race.
