Vegas Golden Knights: Fleury's Leadership is Essential to Team's Success

Marc-Andre Fleury will be a very important piece to the success of the Vegas Golden Knights.

The Vegas Golden Knights’ starting goaltender was drafted first overall in the 2003 NHL Draft by the Pittsburgh Penguins. Fleury was the third goalie in NHL history to be selected first overall (Michel Plasse and Rick DiPietro were also drafted first). He was an 18-year-old kid at the time who played his junior hockey in the QMJHL with the Cape Brenton Screaming Eagles, but he soon would make an immediate impact to start his pro career.

Intro

The first overall pick in the 2003 NHL Draft originally belonged to the Florida Panthers, but on draft day Pittsburgh would trade the third overall pick (Nathan Horton), the 55th overall pick (Stefan Meyer) and Mikael Samuelsson to Florida for the first overall pick (Marc Andre Fleury) and the 73rd overall pick (Daniel Carcillo).

Fleury’s first NHL game was October 10th, 2003. The very first shot he ever faced went in, but he ended up with 46 saves despite a 3-0 Pittsburgh loss. He would win his first career game in his next start. He struggled throughout the season, seeing at least 30 shots per game.

The End of an Era

Fast forward to 2016, Fleury would end up missing the last six games of the regular season and the first seven games of the playoffs due to concussion symptoms. During that time, the Penguins would call up Matt Murray from their AHL affiliate the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Murray’s great performance earned him the starting role throughout the playoffs with Fleury serving as backup. The Penguins would go on to the Stanley Cup Final where they would defeat the San Jose Sharks in six games.

The following year as the 2017 trade-deadline approached , Fleury’s name surfaces as one of the biggest players with trade potential. He was even open to waiving his no-trade clause if that meant a better opportunity for the Penguins. The Calgary Flames, Dallas Stars, Winnipeg Jets and the Colorado Avalanche were all potential suitors for Fleury, but he ended up staying in Pittsburgh. To their benefit, Fleury helped the Penguins become the first team to repeat as Stanley Cup Champions in the salary cap era.

After Murray stole Fleury’s job as a starter, Fleury was there as a mentor for Murray. Instead of complaining or raising an issue with management. He kept his cool, and helped the team, in any way that he could. After receiving the cup in Nashville, he would end up skating over to Matt Murray and handing him the cup and patting him on the back. A move that signalled he was handing over the crease in Pittsburgh to Murray.

A New Era

On June 21st, 2017, Fleury emerged at the Expansion Draft wearing a different teams jersey for the first time in his 14 year NHL career. He would walk out to a thunderous applause and a standing ovation sporting the new Vegas Golden Knights sweater. After a long career in Pittsburgh and three Stanley Cups, it was time to move on. Fleury was now the face of the Vegas Golden Knights.

Known for his pranks back in Pittsburgh, always having a smile on his face, and an overall positive attitude, Fluery’s leadership is going to mean a lot the team and the fans but also to the community.

Fleury is a teammate who never takes credit, always puts the team first, and believes in community outreach. In his short time in Vegas, Fleury has already decorated his goalie mask honoring his team mates, he has attended a hockey clinic for young kids, and he has visited with first responders showing his appreciation after the Vegas tragedy.

In his first week with the Golden Knights, Fleury won both of his starts. He stopped 45 shots in a 2-1 victory over the Stars, then he saved 26 of 27 in a 2-1 win over the Coyotes earning him the NHL’s 2nd star of the week.

Next: VGK Most Underatted Defenseman - Luca Sbisa

Fleury is going to have a big impact on the Vegas Golden Knights in there first few years.

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