Coming back from a tough three-game road trip can leave teams feeling wounded and tired. Going toe-to-toe with the league's best will have other teams looking to feast on the battered carcasses. It's also true when the Vegas Golden Knights face five straight teams in playoff positioning.
However, that didn't faze the home team as Jack Eichel and company defeated the Vancouver Canucks, 3-1. It was a stellar effort that saw the Golden Knights kill two penalties. As for that five-game stretch? The Golden Knights took four games out of five, taking eight points along the way.
Former Golden Knights forward Teddy Blueger (fifth) started the scoring in the first period. He pounced on an opportunity in front of Adin Hill to shoot the puck past the goaltender. However, Hill would keep the team in the game with this spectacular save.
ADIN HILL 🤯
— NHL (@NHL) December 20, 2024
Someone's ready to play for Canada at the #4Nations Face-Off... pic.twitter.com/700z3rReYl
Someone didn't tell Hill that Game 1 of the 2023 Stanley Cup Finals was long over because he stopped a surefire goal on the doorstep. Plays like this would keep the Golden Knights in the game. It would eventually lead to Alex Pietrangelo (third) firing a slapshot past Kevin Lankinen for Vegas's first goal. Hill would stop 20 of 21 shots while Lankinen would stop 19 of 21 shots for Vancouver.
Granted, that goal was the equivalent of shooting a three-point shot in basketball, which is tougher to make. Throw in no screen in front of Lankinen and it makes life harder. But it got the Golden Knights offense going, especially after shooting 14 shots through the first two periods.
William Karlsson (sixth) followed that with a third-period goal, winning a one-on-one battle against Lankinen. Brett Howden added an empty-netter for his 12th of the season. The Golden Knights improve to 21-8-3 and bolster their point total to 45. Meanwhile, the Canucks fall to 16-10-6, staying put in the Pacific Division with 38 points. The loss also drops their road record to 10-3-2.
What's next for the Vegas Golden Knights and Vancouver Canucks?
The Vegas Golden Knights will continue a three-game stretch at T-Mobile Arena on Saturday. They'll face off against the Seattle Kraken at home, followed by Monday's game against the Anaheim Ducks. The Kraken game kicks off a favorable stretch where only one team is in playoff position entering Thursday's game (the Calgary Flames) before January 12.
As for the Vancouver Canucks, they return to Rogers Arena for a three-game set. The action starts on Saturday against the Ottawa Senators, with games against the San Jose Sharks (Monday) and Seattle Kraken (Saturday) constituting the rest of the homestand. After that is a brief two-game trek through the Northwest, starting on December 31st against the Calgary Flames and ending on January 2 against the Seattle Kraken.
When you've taken down two of the best teams in the NHL, you feel like you can do anything in the world. That's the feeling the Golden Knights had after returning home on Thursday. They took down the Canucks, winning their 11th game by one goal or a shootout. Now, it's time to dance the night away with a Swede.
Siri, play "Dancing Queen" by ABBA. William Karlsson calls for it at this moment.