Vegas Golden Knights: Four takeaways from Arizona victory

Hockey is back! The Vegas Golden Knights finally returned to our lives on Sunday after opening their preseason schedule by beating the Arizona Coyotes 6-2 at T-Mobile Arena.

Over 17 thousand people were in attendance to see the return of the Vegas Golden Knights and they were treated to a lively first exhibition game, which was highlighted by Max Pacioretty‘s hat trick and an assist for a four point night. Cody Eakin and Reilly Smith also helped themselves to a tuck each, while Brayden McNabb put the gloss on the victory with an empty netter.

But, as we are all well aware of by now, winning is the least important thing in preseason with blowing off the cobwebs, tinkering with systems and lines and getting a closer look at a slew of prospects the order of the day in any exhibition game. That was certainly the case for the Golden Knights who were able to take plenty of positives from the matchup against the Coyotes.

So, as a result, we have put together a list of four takeaways from the 6-2 win against Arizona, starting with a positive showing from a high-end rookie who is surrounded by high hopes and has a big couple of weeks ahead of him…

1. Cody Glass ready for his chance

We have spoken plenty about Cody Glass this off-season and for good reason too. The rookie forward is without doubt the most prized asset in the Vegas Golden Knights farm system and, after dominating at every single level he’s played at, the time is right for Glass to now make the leap to the NHL.

That is why these next few weeks will be crucial for Glass in terms of proving to Head Coach Gerard Gallant and the rest of the coaching staff why he deserves to be on the opening night roster against the San Jose Sharks on Oct, 2. And it all started on Sunday afternoon when the 20-year-old was put on the top line between veteran forwards Max Pacioretty and Reilly Smith.

It was a huge opportunity for the two-way center and, despite a non-eventful first period, he passed his first big test with flying colors and recovered well from a few noticeable mistakes in the first frame. There were a few blots on his copybook but that is only natural for a rookie trying to impress and you could put a few of those errors down to a case of the butterflies.

However, as already mentioned, Glass grew in confidence the longer the game went on and he showcased his treasure chest of skills, his vision for a pass and his high hockey IQ, which is extremely impressive for someone so young. His skating needs some work but he has plenty of time to work on any flaws in his game and iron out any kinks.

Without doubt though, Glass’ finest moment of the day came in the second period when he fed defenseman Dylan Coghlan who unleashed a shot on net and Pacioretty was there to mop up and complete his hat trick. It was a sublime combination between the two rookies and it highlighted Glass’ creativity and ability to make things happen with a single pass.

What was also impressive was Glass’ hunger to atone for an error. Late in the game he made a mess of a zone entry on the power play which gifted Arizona the puck and the chance to claw a goal back, but the prospect displayed raw speed to get back in the defensive zone, lift a stick and more than make up for his mistake. Rookies are going to mess up every now and then but it was noteworthy to see the hustle from Glass to ensure that his slip up didn’t cost his team.

All in all, it was a solid outing from Glass who can be pleased with how he equipped himself, but there is still plenty of hard work ahead for the forward who will need to work on certain aspects of his game and tidy up around the edges if he wants to be on that opening night roster.

3. Malcolm Subban‘s slow start

Confirmed as the backup to Marc-Andre Fleury for 2019-20 prior to the start of Training Camp, Malcolm Subban was lights out during the first few days and didn’t let in a single goal during 40 minutes of scrimmage time, and he was handed the start against the Arizona Coyotes after Dylan Ferguson was struck down by illness.

However, and as has been the case more often than not during his career so far, Subban endured a slow and woeful start against the Coyotes, letting two soft goals go by him with the first tuck in particular one he will want back.

Subban’s biggest bugaboo is his tendency to start cold and suffer from lapses in concentration, and those flaws were certainly on show in the first period on Sunday. However, to his credit, the goalie did recover well and he finished the preseason opener with 28 saves on 30 shots, including making a flurry of key stops in the second and third periods.

But, if Subban is to achieve his dream of one day becoming a regular starter in the NHL, then he has to iron out certain kinks in his game and eradicate slow starts. It doesn’t matter in the preseason but it will hurt the Golden Knights during the regular season if Subban can’t start hot in games and, against some teams, gifting the opposition an early lead may prove insurmountable and costly.

Again, credit to Subban for bouncing back and looking impressive in the last two periods of the game, but that slow start was somewhat alarming and it is a matter that needs addressing before the regular season starts.

4. Encouraging signs for the defense

All of the talk surrounding the blueline heading into Training Camp revolved around the five rookies that are all battling it out for one roster spot on opening night, and four of those prospects got the chance to impress on Sunday with Nic Hague a healthy scratch.

But, and while there were encouraging signs from the four prospects, there were also notable performances from two established defensemen in Nick Holden and Brayden McNabb who had the opportunity to blow off the cobwebs and get back into the groove.

Statistically, McNabb was the pick of the bunch of the defensemen that played against Arizona after recording an empty netter and a plus/minus rating of +6 in 20:41 minutes of ice time, including a massive 5:22 of shorthanded ice time.

McNabb was one of the most improved players on the Golden Knights last year and he’s looking to carry on from where he left off, and he certainly got off to a good start in the preseason yesterday. Meanwhile, there was also an encouraging outing from Holden who endured a tough debut year in Vegas and he looks set to take on the role of a depth defenseman in 2019-20.

However, paired on the top defensive line with rookie Jake Bischoff, Holden thrived and he finished the game against Arizona with two blocked shots and two takeaways in 17:09 minutes of total ice time and a further 5:24 minutes of shorthanded ice time. His finest moment, though, came in the first period when he produced a sublime dish to set up Max Pacioretty’s breakaway goal.

While it was a good night for the veterans, it was also an encouraging night for Vegas’ four rookies who made the most of their opportunity to impress the coaching staff. Jimmy Schuldt, Zach Whitecloud, Jake Bischoff and Dylan Coghlan all did certain things well and all have got areas they need to improve on, but it was the latter who arguably stole the show.

Coghlan has emerged as a dark horse in the battle for a roster spot on opening night and he certainly did his chances no harm at all on Sunday, tallying an assist in 19:23 minutes of ice time, recording 3:22 of power play time and picking up a plus/minus rating of +3. Bischoff also impressed with a plus/minus rating of +2 and this truly fascinating battle will continue to rage on throughout preseason.