Las Vegas Sun

March 18, 2024

Blog: Golden Knights take down defending champion Penguins 2-1

Goalie MarcAndre Fleury Save

L.E. Baskow

Vegas Golden Knights goalie Marc-Andre Fleury (29) leaves the goal to stop a shot on the ice by Pittsburgh Penguins left wing Conor Sheary (43) during their game at the T-Mobile Arena.

Updated Thursday, Dec. 14, 2017 | 9:35 p.m.

Jon Merrill was inserted into the Golden Knights lineup this morning after it was announced defender Luca Sbisa was out with a lower body injury.

Merrill hadn’t scored a goal the entire season and only had six in his career entering the game, but scored perhaps the biggest of his career.

Erik Haula crossed into the Pittsburgh Penguins zone in the third period of a tie game and left the puck for Merrill, who wound up and drilled it past Penguins’ goalie Matt Murray.

The goal gave the Golden Knights a 2-1 victory over the defending Stanley Cup Champions Thursday night at T-Mobile Arena.

Against his former team, Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 24-of-25 shots.

Golden Knights, Penguins tied after two periods

After a furious start to the game, the Golden Knights and Penguins settled down in the second period with a mostly uneventful 20 minutes of hockey.

Neither team scored in the second period, and the teams will head to the third still locked in a 1-1 tie.

The Golden Knights dominated play for the first portion of the period, doubling the Penguins in shots on goal at one point 16-8.

Pittsburgh would make a run at the end of the period, however, with the help of an interference call on Golden Knights defenseman Jon Merrill. The Penguins weren’t able to score on the power play, but had multiple quality chances late in the period.

The best chance came when Sidney Crosby made a behind the back, between the legs pass from the corner in front of the net. Dominik Simon collected Crosby’s pass, and fed the puck to Brian Dumoulin, who appeared to have a wide open net to shoot at. Fleury slid across the crease just in time to make the save and keep the game tied.

Golden Knights, Penguins tied after one period

The Golden Knights are deadlocked 1-1 with the defending Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins after one period at T-Mobile Arena.

Understandably, the attention was squarely focused on Marc-Andre Fleury, who received a loud ovation from both Golden Knights and Penguins fans prior to the game. Fleury made a few impressive saves in the first period, but it was another former Penguin that stole the show.

James Neal, who played four seasons in Pittsburgh, scored only 1:41 into the game to give Vegas a 1-0 lead.

The Penguins would tie the game when Carl Hagelin found Ian Cole with a gorgeous pass, and Cole put the puck into the top of the net over a sprawled Fleury.

The Golden Knights outshot Pittsburgh 10-6 in the first period.

Pre game

Just six months ago, on June 11, Marc-Andre Fleury was skating around the rink at Bridgestone Arena with the Stanley Cup hoisted above his head, celebrating his third championship with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Tonight, Fleury will start in net for the Golden Knights and face his former team for the first time in his career.

Fleury has 378 career wins, 15th most for a goaltender in NHL history and third most among active players, and all but three came with the Penguins. After being selected in the first round of the 2003 draft, Fleury played 12 seasons in Pittsburgh and is the franchise leader in goaltender games, wins and shutouts.

This date has been circled on Fleury’s calendar for some time.

“Since I saw the schedule, I knew it was coming,” Fleury said. “I still haven’t played against them on the ice, so it will feel a bit surreal.”

It will be unlike any game of Fleury’s lengthy career.

“I’ve played so many times against some of these guys in practice and we always go at it, yelling at each other a bit, so it’s going to be competitive for sure,” Fleury said.

The familiarity Fleury has with nearly every player on the Penguins will make for some interesting in-game banter.

“I’ve definitely made a lot of friends over the years with great teammates,” Fleury said. “I know I’ll see (Patric Hornqvist) a lot in front of the net, so I’ll probably have a little chat with him there. (Sidney Crosby) always comes by. There are a lot of guys, but I’ll try to keep my eyes on the game.”

It will be equally unique in the stands, as the Penguins faithful should pack T-Mobile Arena tonight. The black and gold-cladded fans won’t be hostile though, at least toward Fleury. He is one of the most beloved players in their team’s history and likely will be get one of the loudest welcomes in the history of the building.

Head coach Gerard Gallant and his staff aren’t treating the game any differently.

“We’ll do the same preparation as coaches,” Gallant said. “It’s a fun game. They’re the Stanley Cup champions. Those are fun games to play and fun games to get up for.”

The Penguins have struggled early this season to a 16-13-3 record and sit in sixth place in the Metropolitan Division. But they still have one of the best rosters in the NHL.

“They’re a talented hockey team, and we’ll defend them the way we defend any of the top players,” Gallant said. “We’ll do the best we can and work hard. The guys that are playing them will be aware and know when they’re on the ice, but, again, we have to play our game.”

Crosby hasn’t quite looked himself early in the season, but winger Phil Kessel has stepped up with a team-leading 15 goals and 22 assists.

“He’s a goal scorer and he’s getting opportunities," Gallant said. "Their special teams are good, and he’s a good power play guy with the way he shoots the puck and controls it.”

The game will be an emotional battle for Fleury and his teammates who desperately want to help him get a win over his former team, but in the end, it’s still a hockey game.

“I just have to think about stopping the puck and not worry too much about what guys are thinking,” Fleury said. “I’ve faced them all so much that I don’t want to think too much or get in my own head.”

Prediction : Penguins 4, Golden Knights 2

Season record for predictions: 17-11

Puck drops: 7 p.m.

Where: T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas

Radio: Fox Sports 1340 AM and 98.9 FM

TV: AT&T SportsNet (DirecTV 684, Cox 1313, CenturyLink Prism 1760)

Betting line: Golden Knights minus-110, Total 6 minus-110 to the under

Golden Knights (19-9-2) (11-2-1 home)

Coach: Gerard Gallant

Goal leader: William Karlsson (15)

Assist leader: Jonathan Marchessault and David Perron (16)

Expected goalie: Marc-Andre Fleury (3-1-1, 2.35 goals against average)

Pittsburgh Penguins (16-13-3) (6-8-2 away)

Coach: Mike Sullivan

Goal leader: Phil Kessel (15)

Assist leader: Phil Kessel and Kris Letang (22)

Expected goalie: Matt Murray (11-7-1, 2.95 goals against average)

Golden Knights game day roster

Forwards (12): Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, Cody Eakin, Erik Haula, William Karlsson, Brendan Leipsic, Oscar Lindberg, Jonathan Marchessault, James Neal, Tomas Nosek, David Perron, Reilly Smith and Alex Tuch.

Defensemen (6): Deryk Engelland, Brayden McNabb, Jon Merrill, Colin Miller, Nate Schmidt and Shea Theodore.

Goalies (2): Marc-Andre Fleury and Malcolm Subban

Join the Discussion:

Check this out for a full explanation of our conversion to the LiveFyre commenting system and instructions on how to sign up for an account.

Full comments policy