On Monday, Carter Hart spoke with the media after his first full-workload practice with the Vegas Golden Knights. 

When he joined the organization on October 16th, he also began joining the team for practices and morning skates. Back then, he wasn’t eligible to play, so Hart mainly rotated in as the third goaltender.

Now, things are different. Hart is officially a Golden Knight, with his own stall and his own net in practice. 

Hart just returned from his AHL conditioning stint, where he started three games for the Henderson Silver Knights.

“I feel good,” said Hart after practice on Monday. “It was nice to go down to Henderson and get some game action. I’ve been practicing for a year and a half, so it was nice to get into a real game.”

Before making his first start in Henderson, Hart hadn’t played a professional game in 665 days. 

“There are things in practice that you can’t replicate, broken plays, screens, tips, layered traffic, things like that,” Hart said. “The first game, I was a little nervous; the second game was good. Third game, there were some weird bounces, kind of a weird game. 

“The biggest thing was going down there and just getting minutes of game reps,” finished Hart. “I think it was very valuable, and I’m happy where I’m at right now with my game.”

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Hart finished his AHL conditioning stint with a record of 1-2-0 and an .839 average save percentage. However, the statistics don’t matter to the Golden Knights– what matters to them is that Hart gained something from the conditioning stint.

“I feel a lot better, even just in practice,” said Hart. “Coming here, back in October, I was just kind of the third guy because I couldn’t play. Most of my work was done before and after practice. So to be able to go down there and have my own net and practice– they had a lot of practice time– and then now back up here, getting back into a normal practice routine, it’s huge. It’s helped a lot.”

The AHL conditioning stint was the last step in Hart’s long journey back to the NHL. Now, all that remains is making his first start.

“I’ve worked my ass off to get back to this point,” said Hart. “I’ve done everything I can to be prepared, and I’ll be prepared if I get the call tomorrow.”

Hart didn’t reveal if he’ll start Tuesday’s game against the Chicago Blackhawks, but his return to the NHL is closer than ever. 

“I’ve thought about it a lot over the past couple of years,” he said. “It’s kept me going to get back to this point.”

Hart admitted that, when he does make his return to the NHL, he’ll be both nervous and excited. 

“Obviously, there will be nerves,” Hart said. “I get nervous before every game, but that’s just because I care so much. Those nerves turn into excitement. It’s a game I’ve played my whole life. I’ve played a lot of hockey in the NHL; I’ve been here before. Yeah, I haven’t played in a while, but it’s going to feel good to get back out there and just get back to playing again and get things rolling in Vegas.”