Historically, the Philadelphia Flyers have been a thorn in the side of the Vegas Golden Knights. They've outscored the Golden Knights, 37-31. Granted, Vegas has an all-time record of 6-5-1 against the Flyers.
Good, but it could improve.
Still, the Golden Knights want to get two more points on a five-game road trip. They've won their last two games by a combined score of 9-2. In fact, they're 5-1-1 in their last seven road games. That's made them into one of the most challenging road teams in the past couple of weeks, helping them reach first place in the Pacific Division.
But back to the Flyers for a second. They're the only team that's beaten the Golden Knights in the season opener, doing so on October 4, 2018 (5-2 victory). Combined with Vegas's record against the Flyers lifetime, it's easy to see why one would be cautious for Monday's matchup.
Still, there's also optimism given the recent stretch of success on the road. After all, the Golden Knights have turned their play away from T-Mobile Arena around since their first East Coast clunker. What does Monday's matchup look like for the black and gold?
How Monday's matchup favors the Vegas Golden Knights
If you remember Saturday's matchup against the Montreal Canadiens, the Vegas Golden Knights broke through for a five-goal second period. It was an overwhelming onslaught that chased Sam Montembeault from the Bell Centre.
The Canadiens ranked 31st in 5v5 expected goals against per 60 minutes (3.16), according to JFreshHockey (via TopDownHockey). That would make the five-goal outburst not surprising for the Golden Knights.
5v5 Team Defence - November 24 pic.twitter.com/RXHotAKQHx
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) November 24, 2024
But you'll also notice a similar name near the bottom of that list. Yes, there are the Golden Knights (2.69) sitting at 28th. However, the Philadelphia Flyers are also on the lower rungs (25th with 2.62 expected goals per 60 minutes).
That should give Jack Eichel and company another golden opportunity to tee off offensively. On Saturday, the Golden Knights controlled all three zones, granting them 28 shots on goal. If the Golden Knights establish this strategy on Monday, they'll continue their red-hot road stretch.
Of course, that also means shoring up matters in their defensive zone. The forechecking must be strong, creating turnovers and setting up opportunities in transition. That falls on players like Keegan Kolesar to step up and take control on the defensive end.
Who wins Monday's matchup between the Golden Knights and Philadelphia Flyers?
The good news for the Golden Knights is they have Nicolas Hague back. The tall defenseman tallied a shot and four hits in Saturday's game, a solid effort for someone returning for his first game since November 2.
Of course, there could be more returning players. Victor Olofsson was assigned to the Henderson Silver Knights for conditioning, providing him with an opportunity to find his game. Other names like Mark Stone have been floated as possible returning players on the road trip.
As for Monday's matchup? Trap games tend to pop up at the most inopportune times. Sure, the Flyers are tied for sixth in the Metropolitan Division with 20 points (the Columbus Blue Jackets also have 20 points). However, the Golden Knights are still recovering from their various injuries.
Still, there are good reasons to be optimistic. Unless the Flyers see the Golden Knights as the Soviet National Hockey Team, Vegas should be fine. It should be a 5-3 victory, where Jack Eichel adds a goal and assist. In turn, that would make it 34 points in 22 games.
Sometimes, life throws a tricky matchup into your plans. You're left wondering how to deal with such issues. However, that's something the Golden Knights shouldn't have a problem with on Monday (at least, on paper). If Vegas wins, they'll cap off a successful road trip by earning at least six points.