Vegas Golden Knights: Three Things I Noticed Against the Kraken

The Vegas Golden Knights season is officially on the way. After a great job at scheduling the Vegas Knights against the Kraken for their first games of the season, there were some takeaway’s I felt I should share.

The Vegas Golden Knights season is officially on the way. The National Hockey League did a great job at organizing the Seattle Kraken vs Vegas Golden Knights matchup. With that matchup, we were officially able to welcome the Kraken into the NHL as the 32nd team. After getting a good look at the Kraken there is some quite a bit of potential on their roster, but that’s not what I’m here to talk about.

The Knights season is back and so with that comes lots of articles. This is the first of 82 articles I will be release post-game. So what will I be covering in these articles? Well, I will pick out three points that I feel best explain the game and give my reasoning and thoughts behind the topic. So with that being said, let’s get right into the article.

The Fire-Power Line

Right after puck drop, the Kraken came out firing. Not truly knowing what their game-plan was, I’d assume it was to put as much pressure on Lehner as possible. After the Kraken missed multiple shots, they were soon after granted a power play. The Knights were able to stay calm and collected during their power play which they were able to kill. Shortly after the power kill, the Knights were able to create a scoring opportunity for Max Pacioretty on the wing which gave them a 1-0 lead.

Fast forwarding to the end of the game, the Knights were able to score four goals on 30 total shots. With a very strong offensive showing, it was clear that the Knights were ready to play tonight, and they wanted this win bad. However, If you take a closer look at the Knights offensive stats, there is something that may catch your eye. Between Mark Stone, Chandler Stephenson, and Max Pacioretty, tonight’s first-line, they were able to combine for eight total points. And despite not playing on the same line much during the pre-season, it was clear that they were not lacking chemistry.

Its fair to say that they do have chemistry from playing together last season, but as players develop and grow, their games will change. If you’re not acclimated to their speed, when are they most confident with their puck, are they a trigger happy shooter? It’s part of the reason that pre-season is so important for not just the prospects, but the veterans as well.

Despite the circumstances as far as being short-handed and relying on their top-two lines, they were able to perform extremely well and go out and get the win.

Robin Lehner’s Time to Shine

The pressure was on Lehner tonight, which wasn’t much of a surprise. As I stated above, right out of the gates, the Seattle Kraken were firing numerous shots on Lehner. It’s hard to really determine if that was part of their game-plan, or if they were taking advantage of opportunities given to them. But, either way, they made Lehner work for it.

Throughout 60 minutes of game-play, Lehner faced 31 shots from the Kraken and allowed three goals. Given the shoes that he will be filling this season, and the mantle that he’ll have to fill, he will be facing a lot of pressure this season. It’s not every day that you have to fill the shoes of an all-time great. More than that, he has to perform to a comparable standard even though he’s never actually played or acted as a starter for a full season. The weight that is going to be on his shoulders will show the character he is, and the level of talent he truly has.

Now going back to the game, Although allowing three goals isn’t ideal, Lehner performed very well. The Kraken had some excellent chances to score throughout the game, but Lehner came up with a couple very good saves to help keep his team in the lead. Now, the third goal he allowed to Morgan Geekie wasn’t great, he was still able to be a big part of the win. He was one of the key players of the game and deserved to be talked about.

Defense Wins Championships

Now, the title of this can be misleading, so I apologize. However, I do want to talk about just how impressive the Knights defense was. Over the course of 60 minutes, the Knights were able to record 19 blocked shots,10 takeaways, and 26 hits. After the game Pete DoBoer said that he went into training camp looking to record more turnovers in order to create a better transition game.

Looking back at some of the players statistics, there were multiple players that contributed on the defensive side. With 10 blocked shots from the defenseman, and then nine from the forward, everyone contributed while on the ice defensively. They were able to consistently step up and take away shots in the slot and along the wing. Now it’s only one game but, the defensive outing they had is extremely hard to critique.

In conclusion, there were a lot of good things that came of the game. With a strong offensive showing from the first two lines, and a strong defensive showing all the way around, the Knights are looking like they are already in mid-season form.