SAN JOSE — Defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic will return to the lineup after a two-game absence as the Sharks host the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday with their season on the line.

Although the Sharks held an optional morning skate Thursday, Vlasic will likely be paired once again with Brent Burns for Game 5 of the first round best-of-7 series at SAP Center that the Golden Knights lead three-games-to-one.

Vlasic and Burns were together for Game 1 and the first part of Game 2 before Vlasic was injured. Early in the second period of that game, Vlasic was struck by the puck off a shot from Golden Knights defenseman Shea Theodore, immediately left the ice and did not return.

Vlasic had a goal and an assist and played 23 minutes and 8 seconds in Game 1, which the Sharks won 5-2.

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“Felt great, really good,” Vlasic said. “Get (Burns) the puck, we had good breakouts, it felt really good. So it should be the same tonight.

“It’s no different than playing with Erik, no different from playing with the other elite defensemen I’ve played with in the past.”

Sharks coach Pete DeBoer said other lineup decisions will not be finalized until game time, although it appears with Vlasic back, Tim Heed will be a healthy scratch.

It also appeared that with Joe Thornton returning from a one-game suspension he served Tuesday, Lukas Radil will come out of the lineup. Joonas Donskoi, it appears, will stay in the lineup. Both Donskoi and Radil played Game 4 after they were scratched for the first three games of the series.

Where Donskoi will start Game 5 is uncertain, although with Micheal Haley still dealing with a lower body injury he suffered in Game 3, there is an opening on the fourth line with Barclay Goodrow and Melker Karlsson.

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Vlasic, a gold medal winner with Team Canada at the 2014 Olympics, is the Sharks’ most -playoff-experienced defenseman. Thursday’s game will be Vlasic’s 127th in the postseason.

In Game 1 when the Sharks had last change, Vlasic and Burns were on the ice a fair amount against the Golden Knights’ line of Paul Stastny, Max Pacioretty and Mark Stone. That trio has made an impact all series, but particularly in the last three games when they combined for 23 points at even strength and on the power play.

“He’s known as being one of the best defensemen in the league. Obviously, it changes a lot,” Golden Knights forward Jon Marchessault said of Vlasic’s return. “He really aware everywhere on the ice. He’s a smart defenseman.”

Burns had a goal and an assist in the first game of the series but has been held without a point in the three games since. The Sharks defense, as a whole, has managed just four assists in the last three games, with Erik Karlsson collecting three. Karlsson has five assists in four games.

Can the return of Vlasic perhaps spark Burns and the rest of the Sharks’ offense? From DeBoer’s perspective, not necessarily.

After all, the Sharks have never had a lead in the last three games of the series as Vegas scored the first goal 58 seconds into Game 2, 16 seconds into Game 3 and 1:11 into Game 4.

“Burnzie doesn’t need help with his game,” DeBoer said. “(The Golden Knights) are obviously keying on him, they’re standing beside him in (the offensive zone). He’s not going to put up the production he’s put up in the regular season.

“I think (Burns) has played well. You look at the goals against, the numbers and some of the times we’ve been exposed, but that exposure is because we’re chasing the game. We have to open it up because we’re playing from behind. That’s what it looks like, and that’s what it has looked like all year.

“I don’t think criticism of Brent Burns or having a different partner is going to help him. I think he’s playing well. They’re paying attention to him and he’s doing a real good job of playing within that.”

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Home sweet home? Giants, visitors at Oracle Park, tie franchise record in win Penalties have helped define this series, as the Sharks have been on the penalty kill an NHL-leading 22 times in four games. the Golden Knights are tied for second with Calgary with 20 each.

The difference is that Vegas has six power play goals — five of which came after Vlasic was hurt. The Sharks have managed three power play goals and have gone 1-for-7 with the man advantage the last two games.