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Vegas Golden Knights: Top 5 home games to look forward to in 2019-20

By Andrew Steele-Davis

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - APRIL 21: (EDITORS NOTE: This image was shot with a fisheye lens.) Fans wave towels as they wait for the first period to start in Game Six of the Western Conference First Round between the San Jose Sharks and the Vegas Golden Knights during the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at T-Mobile Arena on April 21, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Sharks defeated the Golden Knights 2-1 in double overtime to even the series at 3-3. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - APRIL 21: (EDITORS NOTE: This image was shot with a fisheye lens.) Fans wave towels as they wait for the first period to start in Game Six of the Western Conference First Round between the San Jose Sharks and the Vegas Golden Knights during the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at T-Mobile Arena on April 21, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Sharks defeated the Golden Knights 2-1 in double overtime to even the series at 3-3. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /
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BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – JUNE 12: Ryan O’Reilly #90 of the St. Louis Blues hoists the Stanley Cup after defeating the Boston Bruins, 4-1, to win Game Seven of the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Final at TD Garden on June 12, 2019 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – JUNE 12: Ryan O’Reilly #90 of the St. Louis Blues hoists the Stanley Cup after defeating the Boston Bruins, 4-1, to win Game Seven of the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Final at TD Garden on June 12, 2019 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /

Vs St. Louis Blues, Jan, 4

The Golden Knights will roll out the red carpet for the reigning Stanley Cup champions for a Saturday matinee in the second game of 2020. The Blues will be out to repeat and it will be interesting to see if they are suffering from a Stanley Cup hangover at the midway point of the season.

St. Louis wove one of the greatest comeback stories in all of sports last year when they surged from dead last in the NHL on Jan, 3, to dominating the postseason and beating the Boston Bruins in the Stanley Cup Final to lift the greatest prize in all of sports. They in the process tore up the script for how teams build a cup contender, and they have all the pieces in place to contend once again.

They are a big bruising team and, although it looks unlikely that they will bring back power forward Patrick Maroon, they still have the core of their championship team intact and they boast a slew of players who can dish out bone-crushing hits at will. The Blues will look to beat up the Golden Knights and it will be arguably one of the sternest tests of the year for Gerard Gallant‘s troops.

Vegas will no doubt have drawn inspiration from St. Louis for how they went about building a team to win hockey’s ultimate prize, and they will hope to replicate the Blues’ success in 2019-20. A victory against the reigning champs would be a huge scalp to collect and it should be a packed T-Mobile Arena who will be hoping for some extended festive cheer.

The game will also provide the Knights with a reunion with forward David Perron, who tallied 66 points (16 goals, 50 assists) in his one and only season with Vegas in 2017-18. Perron was loved by the Vegas faithful and he will no doubt receive a warm welcome upon his return.

LAS VEGAS, NV – APRIL 04: Niklas Hjalmarsson #4 of the Arizona Coyotes battles William Karlsson #71 of the Vegas Golden Knights during the second period at T-Mobile Arena on April 4, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by David Becker/NHLI via Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV – APRIL 04: Niklas Hjalmarsson #4 of the Arizona Coyotes battles William Karlsson #71 of the Vegas Golden Knights during the second period at T-Mobile Arena on April 4, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by David Becker/NHLI via Getty Images) /

Vs Arizona Coyotes, Mar, 25

With any luck, the Golden Knights will have stamped their playoff ticket by the time they play at T-Mobile Arena for the final time in the 2019-20 regular season at the end of March. If not, then we could be in store for one hell of an exciting but nerve-wracking evening.

The Knights will bring the curtain down at home against the Coyotes before rounding off the regular season with a four-game road trip. Even if they are assured of a postseason berth by the time Arizona rolls into town, Vegas will still want to put on a show in order to build momentum heading into the heat of the playoffs.

This will be no easy task, however, and they will face a Coyotes team who should be vastly improved in 2019-20. They responded to just missing out on the postseason last year by being aggressive in the offseason, capping off a productive summer by adding Phil Kessel in a trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Next. Cody Glass' time is next. dark

A proven scorer in the NHL, Kessel has tallied at least 20 goals in 11 consecutive seasons and he should spark a slumping offense into life that ranked tied for third-fewest in the NHL in goals with 209 last year.

The Coyotes just missed out on a wild-card spot last year and they will be hoping to bridge that gap in 2019-20. And Vegas’ home finale could be a crucial tilt for Arizona too in terms of their playoff aspirations, so it is no surprise that the game will be broadcast on NBCSN given what could be at stake for both teams.

So, those are the top 5 home contests we can’t wait for in 2019-20 and, of course, there are so many other games that could have made the list. What home games are you most looking forward to? Let us know on Twitter and keep an eye out for our three toughest home games and the three toughest road games, with both features coming soon!

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