Blog: Golden Knights’ winning streak snapped with home loss to Kings

By Justin Emerson

Published Sunday, March 1, 2020 | 3:28 p.m.

Updated Sunday, March 1, 2020 | 10:11 p.m.

Every winning streak has to come to an end. Perhaps few would have picked Sunday to be the game to end it, but that's hockey.

The Golden Knights allowed a goal on the first shot of the game for the second night in a row and despite a lopsided possession advantage, couldn't find the net enough and fell to the Los Angeles Kings 4-1 at T-Mobile Arena.

The Golden Knights led in shots on goal 43-17 and allowed one shot on goal in the third period. They generated 87 shot attempts, which is tied for the second-most in a game this season.

Anze Kopitar scored on the Kings' first shot 2:01 into the game, then on the power play at 7:39 to put the Kings up 2-1 early on. They extended the lead to 3-0 on a goofy spin-shot by Trevor Lewis in the second before Vegas got on the board.

That was courtesy of Shea Theodore, who intercepted a Kings clearing attempt and whipped in a power-play goal at 13:14 of the second to trim the lead to 3-1.

Unfortunately for Vegas, another Kings power play led to another Kings goal. Alex Iafallo tucked home a rebound with 56 seconds left in the middle period and the Kings led 4-1.

Vegas had won its past eight games, which tied a franchise record set in its inaugural season.

Golden Knights' deficit grows in second period against Kings

Hockey can be a cruel game sometimes. The Golden Knights were better than the Los Angeles Kings in the second period Sunday, but only scored one goal and gave up two.

The result was a 4-1 deficit after two periods at T-Mobile Arena, with one period remaining to salvage the eight-game winning streak.

The Golden Knights had two great opportunities early in the period but didn't score. William Karlsson was first at the doorstep, but Cal Petersen was able to get a toe on it and keep it out. On the second one Paul Stastny was all alone in front of the net but couldn't get a shot off thanks to strong work from the Kings' defense.

So naturally, with all the action in front of the Los Angeles net, it was the Kings who scored first in the period. Trevor Lewis had a decent lane to the goal but was caught by Nick Holden. That forced Lewis to pull up from his direct shot, and did a sort of spin-shot around Holden and caught Fleury by surprise.

It was off the post and in, giving the Kings a 3-0 lead at 10:04.

This time though, Vegas had an answer. Max Pacioretty drew a penalty when he was all alone in front of Petersen but couldn't score. It set up a Vegas power play where Pacioretty set up the goal, though he didn't get credit for the assist.

Pacioretty blasted a one-timer that dented the iron, and when Los Angeles' Ben Hutton tried to clear the puck Shea Theodore was there to intercept and fire it into the net. It was Theodore's 11th of the season and it trimmed the Kings' lead to 3-1 at 13:14 of the second.

It was a much better period for the Golden Knights, who outshot the Kings 15-7 in the second period, but saw their deficit grow from two goals to three. Alex Martinez collided with Petersen late in the second, sending the Kings to a power play that didn't last long. Adrian Kempe's shot bounced off Fleury's pad and Alex Iafallo tapped home the rebound to make it 4-1.

The Golden Knights led 18-7 in shots on goal for the period, giving them a 24-16 edge for the game.

Heavily favored Golden Knights trail Kings after one period

The last time the Golden Knights hosted the Los Angeles Kings, they gave up four goals in the first period. It wasn't that bad on Sunday, but you never want to harken back those memories.

Vegas allowed two goals in the first period and never looked comfortable, struggling for most of the period to get the puck out of their zone. After 20 minutes, Vegas trailed 2-0 at T-Mobile Arena.

For the second game in a row, the Golden Knights allowed a goal on the first shot they faced. This time it was Anze Kopitar, who took a feed from Alex Iafallo from behind the net and roofed it at 2:01. Iafallo wasn't pressured much behind the net and had plenty of time to give it to Kopitar, who likewise had all day to shoot.

The nightmareish start continued for the Golden Knights took a penalty a few minutes later. It brought the Kings' power play to the plate and it swung for the fences. Drew Doughty had the initial shot, going low off Marc-Andre Fleury's pads, and the puck bounced to Kopitar, who went top-shelf again for his second of the game.

The Golden Knights, who closed as minus-350 favorites at some books, trailed 2-0 to the last-place team in the Western Conference 7:39 into the game.

The Golden Knights had a power play in the first and should have had a second. Drew Doughty, moments after leaving the box for a hooking penalty, was flagged for goalie interference. But as the Golden Knights played on the delay call, Nate Schmidt was called for interference and the game went to 4-on-4. Neither team scored.

Los Angeles led in shots on goal 9-6.

Brandon Pirri returns as Golden Knights welcome Kings

Brandon Pirri wasn't thinking about whether or not he'd play with the Golden Knights this season. He was assigned to AHL Chicago on Nov. 17 and has been there since.

He has played well in the AHL, well enough to earn a call-up back to the Golden Knights. He's expected to be in the lineup at T-Mobile Arena tonight when Vegas hosts the Los Angeles Kings at 7:30 p.m.

The game will be televised nationally on NBC Sports Network.

"It's my 10th year and I know if you're thinking about that stuff you're wasting on your time," Pirri said on his expectations of coming back to the NHL this season. "I'm taking it a day at a time and just trying to enjoy it."

Pirri, who signed a two-year contract with the Golden Knights in the offseason, started the season with no goals and one assist in 11 games before being sent to Chicago.

He had 15 goals and 35 points in 38 games there and was recalled Saturday to be in Vegas in time for morning skate Sunday. He's projected to play left wing on the third line alongside Nick Cousins and Nicolas Roy tonight.

"When you look at some of the guys we're missing, (Alex) Tuch and (Mark) Stone, some offensive guys, he's the one guy down there that's scored at this level," coach Peter DeBoer said. "He's done it pretty consistently when he's been up here. He has an offensive element that maybe some of the other guys don't. For me, it's a chance to put a guy in that has some of that that ability and maybe a little more of what we're missing."

Sunday also features the first time Alec Martinez will face his old team. From the time he was drafted in 2007 until he was traded to Vegas on Feb. 19, Martinez spent parts of 13 seasons in the Kings organization. He has been tremendous in five games with the Golden Knights so far, and is excited for a chance to play against his old teammates.

"I was there a long time, developed a lot of good friendships, a lot of memories with those guys," Martinez said. "I'd be lying if I said it wasn't going to be a little weird. ... To be honest, this is uncharted territory for me. I've never really gone through this before."

The Golden Knights have struggled historically against the Kings, with five wins in 12 all-time meetings (5-5-2). They are 2-2-1 across three seasons at home, and are 1-2 in three meetings this season.

TV: NBC Sports Network (DirecTV 220, Cox 38, CenturyLink 640)

Radio: Fox Sports 1340 AM and 98.9 FM

Betting line: Golden Knights minus-350, Kings plus-270; over/under: 6 (minus-105, minus-115)

Golden Knights (36-22-8, 80 points) (21-10-4 home), first place, Pacific Division

Coach: Peter DeBoer (first season)

Points leader: Max Pacioretty, Mark Stone (63)

Goals leader: Max Pacioretty (30)

Assists leader: Mark Stone (42)

Expected goalie: Marc-Andre Fleury (2.73 GAA, .908 save percentage)

Kings (24-35-6, 54 points) (9-22-4 road), eighth place, Pacific Division; ninth place, Wild Card

Coach: Todd McLellan (first season)

Points leader: Anze Kopitar (18)

Goals leader: Anze Kopitar (39)

Assists leader: Anze Kopitar (57)

Expected goalie: Jonathan Quick (2.91 GAA, .901 save percentage)

Golden Knights projected lineup

Forwards

Jonathan Marchessault—Paul Stastny—Reilly Smith

Max Pacioretty—William Karlsson—Chandler Stephenson

Brandon Pirri—Nick Cousins—Nicolas Roy

William Carrier—Tomas Nosek—Ryan Reaves

Defensemen

Brayden McNabb—Nate Schmidt

Alec Martinez—Shea Theodore

Nick Holden—Zach Whitecloud

Goalies

Marc-Andre Fleury, Robin Lehner