The Golden Knights, by switching up their blue line, aren’t panicking. But they are trying to get themselves going.

The Knights went back to some familiar defense pairs at Monday’s practice after earning one of a possible six points from their three-game road trip.

Noah Hanifin is partnered with Alex Pietrangelo again, while Shea Theodore moved back to the right side and skated with longtime partner Brayden McNabb. The third pair also featured a reunion between Nic Hague and Zach Whitecloud.

“I’d say, in a nutshell, we haven’t been good back there,” coach Bruce Cassidy said.

Cassidy didn’t put all the Knights’ defensive issues — they have given up four goals in four of their six games — on the blue line.

But he believes going back to some familiar pairs could get his defensemen pointed in the right direction before the team begins a four-game homestand Tuesday against the Los Angeles Kings.

The Knights were outscored 6-5 when Theodore and Pietrangelo shared the ice at five-on-five their first six games. They were outscored 5-4 when Hanifin and Hague were together.

The team did outscore its opponents 5-2 when McNabb and Whitecloud played, but it trailed in shot attempts 90-63 in those minutes.

It shouldn’t take long for the new pairs to find chemistry.

Theodore and McNabb have played together most of their eight years with the Knights. Hague and Whitecloud have been partners dating back to their days with the American Hockey League’s Chicago Wolves.

Hanifin and Pietrangelo played seven games together last year after Hanifin was acquired prior to the trade deadline in March. They were one of the Knights’ best pairings until Pietrangelo missed the final month of the regular season with appendicitis. The team outscored opponents 6-5 with the two on the ice at five-on-five.

“There’s really no newness to what we’re doing, so it’s not like panic and throw everything against the wall,” Cassidy said.

Hanifin is one player who could benefit from a change.

The 28-year-old, who signed an eight-year extension with the Knights in April, has one assist through six games and is minus-3 at five-on-five.

Hanifin said one thing the team’s blue line can improve on is taking better angles when defending the rush. Breakdowns on the road led to a 4-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday and a 4-3 overtime loss to the Florida Panthers on Saturday.

“It’s a long season, and sometimes when you lose a couple in a row, there’s something to look at,” Hanifin said. “I think, for us, we have a pretty veteran (defense) core back there. I think we all know we can take it up a notch.”

Hanifin said the Knights failed to maintain some of their good habits on the road after a 3-0-0 start to the season.

They have a chance to right the ship this upcoming homestand, which features three games against Pacific Division foes. The turnaround might start with the blue-line shakeup.

“Sometimes it’s good to play with somebody new and freshen it up. But it’s up to us individually,” Hanifin said. “We’ve just lost three games in a row. Everybody has to play better.”

Contact Danny Webster at [email protected]. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.

Karlsson back, Olofsson week-to-week

Golden Knights center William Karlsson returned to practice in a non-contact jersey Monday after sitting out a month with an undisclosed injury.

Karlsson last skated with the Knights during the team’s third day of training camp Sept. 21. He’s missed the team’s first six games of the season and will not play Tuesday against the Los Angeles Kings.

Still, returning to practice was a step in the right direction.

“Not ready yet, but (Karlsson’s) a step closer, which is good,” Cassidy said.

Right wing Victor Olofsson, on the other hand, is considered week-to-week after sustaining a lower-body injury in the Knights’ 4-2 loss to the Washington Capitals on Oct. 15. Olofsson hasn’t appeared in the team’s last two games.

The 29-year-old has three goals in four games this season, including two on the power play. Olofsson signed a one-year, $1.075 million deal with the Knights on July 2.

Danny Webster/Review-Journal