If there were two words to describe the Vegas Golden Knights's last road trip, it'd be "squandered opportunities." The team had the perfect chance to break away from their divisional rivals. Instead, a missed opportunity to score an empty-net goal represented what the trip was about.
Luckily, the gang returns to T-Mobile Arena on Thursday to face the Boston Bruins. Adin Hill and company is 24-7-3 at home this season.
The Edmonton Oilers (84 points) and Los Angeles Kings (81 points) aren't going away any time soon. Therefore, winning key games and putting that trip behind is a must.
On paper, it looks like Thursday's game should be easy. The Bruins are 11-18-3 away from TD Garden this season and they're sitting on the outside of the playoff picture.
But as the last trip proved, things aren't as they seem. The Golden Knights were outscored in their last two games, 7-3.
Mind you, the Buffalo Sabres and Detroit Red Wings were out of the playoff picture (and still are). Some adjustments must be made to ensure that doesn't happen again.
Luckily, the Golden Knights can take care of business. It offers an embarrassed player the chance to redeem himself. In fact, it could be the springboard for the team to make a deep run, capping off the month of March.
Watch for Tomas Hertl to redeem himself during the Vegas Golden Knights homestand
Remember when Tomas Hertl flubbed the opportunity of a century on Saturday. He had an empty net to work with and finish the Buffalo Sabres. However, he passed it to Jack Eichel so the center could stick it to his former team. Hmm, I wonder how that turned out?
Tomas Hertl had a chance for the empty net goal in the third, but tried to give it to Jack Eichel instead.
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) March 15, 2025
Now the game is going to the shootout 😅 pic.twitter.com/uKLUIHByjm
Say whatever you want about this play.
"Oh, He CoUlDn'T bAcKhAnD iT fRoM tHeRe."
He's 6'3" and can turn the defender away in this situation. Look at this play should the team go through a bad slump and fall out of the divisional picture. Luckily, there's a remedy and it involves the Prague native.
If you remember the last time the Boston Bruins played the Vegas Golden Knights, the power play was the focal point. In fact, it's still true to this day since Boston is second in the NHL in penalty minutes (709).
That's especially true with Hertl scoring the game-winning goal... on the power play. The goal? Draw as many penalties as you can and soak up the offensive zone time. But that strategy doesn't just apply to Thursday's game.
It should also be used against the Detroit Red Wings as well
Looking at the Detroit Red Wings, you'll see a penalty kill that's dead-last in the NHL (69.9%). Granted, they're much tougher to get a penalty drawn against than the Bruins (460, 26th-most in the league). Sunday's game also saw the Red Wings get two penalty minutes the entire game (albeit on a scrum involving Ilya Samsonov). However, it can be done.
That starts with keeping your cool and not taking any unnecessary penalties. In the first period of Sunday's game, Brett Howden took a bad penalty that he could've simply let go. He held Jonathan Berggren when he could've let him take the puck. The result? Decreased offensive zone time, leading to a 3-0 shutout loss.
That must change on Saturday (and Thursday) for that matter. Get back to the basics and make the simple plays. Don't do too much like Howden did on Sunday.
Sometimes, it takes simplicity to win a hockey game. Watching Tomas Hertl miss a "golden" opportunity to finish the Buffalo Sabres is a perfect example of this. That could haunt the Golden Knights throughout the homestand if they don't change their ways. Worse, it could cost them the Pacific Division.