Vegas Hockey Knight
Fansided

Vegas Golden Knights: Three main takeaways from overtime thriller in LA

By Andrew Steele-Davis

LOS ANGELES, CA - SEPTEMBER 19: The Vegas Golden Knights celebrate their 3-2 overtime win over the Los Angeles Kings at STAPLES Center on September 19, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Juan Ocampo/NHLI via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - SEPTEMBER 19: The Vegas Golden Knights celebrate their 3-2 overtime win over the Los Angeles Kings at STAPLES Center on September 19, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Juan Ocampo/NHLI via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 3
Next
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – SEPTEMBER 15: Max Pacioretty #67 of the Vegas Golden Knights celebrates with Cody Glass #9 after Pacioretty scored a first-period goal against the Arizona Coyotes during their preseason game at T-Mobile Arena on September 15, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Golden Knights defeated the Coyotes 6-2. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – SEPTEMBER 15: Max Pacioretty #67 of the Vegas Golden Knights celebrates with Cody Glass #9 after Pacioretty scored a first-period goal against the Arizona Coyotes during their preseason game at T-Mobile Arena on September 15, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Golden Knights defeated the Coyotes 6-2. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

2. Cody Glass making the most of his chance

A lot has been said about Cody Glass this off-season and rightly so given the high ceiling Vegas’ first ever pick in franchise history possesses. He has dominated at every level he’s played at so far, including going on an absolute tear in the Calder Cup Playoffs last year with seven goals and eight assists for 15 points in 22 games for the Chicago Wolves.

Glass has been given an opportunity to battle for a spot on the opening night roster throughout Training Camp, and he did a solid job in the preseason opener against the Arizona Coyotes last Sunday, recording an assist and a plus/minus rating of +2 in 15:04 of ice time.

However, Thursday felt like a significant moment for the two-way forward with it becoming pretty evident prior to puck drop that if Glass is going to make the leap to the NHL in 2019-20, then it will have to be on the wing rather than as a center.

So, as a result, Glass began the night on the right wing of the second line with Cody Eakin and Alex Tuch, which could eventually become the Golden Knights’ third line during the regular season in 2019-20.

However, Glass was presented with an even bigger opportunity later on in the game after sliding up to play center on the top line following William Karlsson‘s early exit, and he also logged 2:19 minutes on the power play.

Although he was held without a point, the 20-year-old really burst onto the scene and he was sensational, producing a flurry of sublime passes that nearly resulted in goals, including a stunning no-look pass to defenseman Nic Hague who forced a brilliant stop from Jonathan Quick with a one-timer.

His playmaking ability is something the Golden Knights haven’t seen before, and they now have a player who can truly create something out of nothing and there is no doubt that Glass has the potential to morph into an elite playmaker in the NHL.

And, to cap off what was a hugely encouraging night, Glass pulled off the spectacular after deking around LA Kings star Anze Kopitar, before pulling the puck back through the veteran’s legs to give Vegas fans a glimpse of what they could have to look forward to.

Granted, Brandon Pirri, Valentin Zykov and Tomas Nosek have all made a strong start to the preseason in the battle for that roster spot on the third line, but Glass is certainly doing everything in his power to nudge ahead of the competition and cement his name on that opening night lineup card.

Home/Analysis