Vegas Golden Knights center Nicolas Roy (10) reacts after scoring against Anaheim Ducks goaltender John Gibson (36) during the first period of an NHL hockey game Friday, Dec. 31, 2021, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/David Becker)
Friday, Dec. 31, 2021 | 4:31 p.m.
A year ago, as his 2020 drew to a close, Nicolas Roy had yet to establish himself as an NHL regular.
The Golden Knights forward had played well at times, but had appeared in just 35 regular season games.
What a difference a year makes.
At the close of 2021, Roy is a pivotal piece of the Golden Knights’ forward group, and scored the opening goal in a 3-1 win over the Anaheim Ducks this afternoon at T-Mobile Arena.
He played nearly twice as much in 2021 as he did in 2018, 2019 and 2020 combined, and is rolling through what is looking like a career-best season.
“I think last year for me was more getting to my game. It was my first real season and I knew coming into this season I was more confident than I ever was last year,” Roy said. “It’s been clicking with the guys, the teammates and the linemates. It’s going pretty well right now.”
On Friday, Roy turned in one of his finest outings as a Golden Knight in the New Year’s Eve clash with Anaheim, tipping in the opening goal — after missing a chance just seconds earlier. He worried about getting some flak from teammates on the bench if all he did was miss a tap-in, so he was determined to finish the shift with a goal, he jokingly said.
The tally was his career-best seventh of the season, extending what has already been the best scoring season of his career to 17 points.
He also controlled what coaches like to call the little parts of the game. He was a menace in front of the Anaheim net, he won battles at the boards and set up teammates.
“The last 10 games he’s been a real good opportunist,” said assistant coach Ryan McGill, who handled postgame media duties. “Whenever he’s been around the net he’s buried his chances and he’s had chances and he’s put himself in the spot to get those chances. … He’s gaining a lot of confidence with his play because he’s getting to all the hard areas to get those looks and get those opportunities.”
Roy’s game was just a part of a dominant outing for the Golden Knights, where the final score wasn’t a fair way to describe Vegas’ demolition of Anaheim.
The Golden Knights’ 45 shots were their most in a game this season, and their 16 shots allowed were their fewest. The Ducks goal came on the power play with 11 seconds left in the game, long past the point anyone thought Anaheim might mount a comeback.
Adam Brooks and Mattias Janmark tallied the other goals for Vegas, as Janmark scored on a rebound shot in the second period for a convincing 3-0 lead. On the play, Janmark passed to Keegan Kolesar for a golden chance in front of the Ducks’ net that was turned away by goalie John Gibson. Janmark recovered the puck, circled around the net with it and scored.
“I don’t know how long I was on the ice there, but I was a little out of breath,” Janmark said. “I just tried to keep it simple there, obviously.”
The year may be over but the season has yet to hit the halfway mark, and they hope there’s much more to be written in the story of 2021-22. Vegas, after winning two playoff rounds at the end of last season, now find itself atop the Pacific Division standings. Not bad for a team that’s battled injuries most of the season.
“The team’s been feeling real good in the last month or so, and to cap off the month or the year in a fashion like that, it couldn’t feel any better,” goalie Laurent Brossoit said.
