Vegas Golden Knights center Paul Cotter (43) is congratulated by teammates after scoring against the Chicago Blackhawks during the second period of an NHL hockey game at T-Mobile Arena Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022.
Published Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022 | 9:41 p.m.
Updated Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022 | 11:42 p.m.
Paul Cotter has arrived at T-Mobile Arena twice in his short career donning a black fedora. In both games, he’s scored.
Coincidence? Maybe, but there’s more to it than fate right now for the Golden Knights’ rookie forward. Cotter’s strong play since training camp was rewarded once again, scoring the lone goal in a 1-0 Vegas win over the Chicago Blackhawks in the home opener at T-Mobile Arena on Thursday night.
Cotter rocked the famous headwear while walking the gold carpet prior to the game, the annual tradition where Golden Knights players and coaches get the Hollywood treatment and sign autographs for fans.
The last time the fedora made its presence was the second game of Cotter's career Nov. 11 against Minnesota. He scored his first NHL goal that night, and teammate Jonathan Marchessault teased the rookie for his choice of lid.
Safe to say he has to keep wearing it, right?
“How can you not? I’ll spread it out,” Cotter said with a laugh. “We’ll see if I can [score] without it.”
Cotter’s goal was the only taste of offense in a game dominated by goaltending. Logan Thompson made 27 saves for the second shutout of his career, slightly outdueling Alex Stalock and his 36-save effort.
The lone shot Stalock couldn’t stop was a rocket from Cotter off a 2-on-1 with Reilly Smith to his left. Cotter was sprung on the odd-man rush after exiting the penalty box from a hooking penalty two minutes prior. Once he received the puck from Zach Whitecloud, he and Smith took off.
Cotter picked the right corner for the third goal in his nine-game NHL career.
“It’s unbelievable. He was arguably one of the best players for us during the preseason,” Thompson said of Cotter, the two spending a lot of time as teammates with AHL Henderson over the past couple of years. “He’s worked so hard this summer, he put the work in, and it’s paying off. I’m happy for him.”
Cotter's consistency during the preseason has continued, and he has since turned that into two quality outings for the now 2-0-0 Golden Knights.
Cotter started Tuesday’s season opener in Los Angeles on the fourth line in place of the injured William Carrier at left wing. With Carrier’s return Thursday, Cotter was bumped up to the third line with Marchessault and William Karlsson, skating in place of the scratched Michael Amadio.
Aside from his play as a power forward meshing well with Karlsson and Marchessault, it’s another instance where Cotter has deserved the attention he’s gotten. He played 12:19 on Thursday with two shots on goal.
The hectic NHL schedule hasn’t given Cotter much time to sit back and reflect on this whirlwind he’s been on. It’s not that he’s experiencing NHL games for the first time, but being the only Vegas player to appear in all seven preseason games and now playing a pivotal role in two regular season games, the pressure to perform has been there.
“I think once I take a step back and realize what’s been going on the last couple of weeks, it’ll be an eye-opener,” Cotter said. “It helps that we don’t have too much time off. There’s a game, hard practice, game, hard practice. It’s something I’m not really used to.”
Thursday wasn’t anything close to Tuesday's track meet in Los Angeles. Blame it on the first-home-game jitters or taking an inferior opponent lightly, but the Golden Knights put 37 shots on Stalock. They just had problems holding onto the puck with 11 giveaways, most of which came in the first two periods.
Chicago had chances to capitalize, but Thompson was strong, particularly on the penalty kill. He made two saves on Tyler Johnson in the final minute of the first period, including a glove save where he went left to right and batted it away.
“Sometimes it’s not pretty,” Thompson said. “You’ve got to rely on your athletic ability, and tonight it worked out for me.”
The Golden Knights are in need of relying on young players, like Thompson and Cotter, to prove the depth can be reliable for a playoff run.
Those two are the first examples that the prospect pool in the Vegas organization is paying off. You can even add second-year forward Jake Leschyshyn to that group despite being a healthy scratch through two games.
If it takes Cotter wearing a fedora every game to prove it, he might have to keep doing it.
“Especially the path he’s had, mine too, I’m sure it’s cool for other people just to see a guy so dominant in a game and so good,” Cotter said of Thompson. “I’m sure for some guys not in the best spots or who are a little younger and look at a guy like him or me, and say, ‘wow, they made it. We can do the same thing.’”
Danny Webster can be reached at 702-259-8814 or [email protected]. Follow Danny on Twitter at twitter.com/DannyWebster21.
