Jason Redmond / Associated Press
Vegas Golden Knights center Jonathan Marchessault celebrates with the bench after scoring a goal during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Seattle Kraken, Saturday, Oct. 15, 2022, in Seattle.
Published Saturday, Oct. 15, 2022 | 9:50 p.m.
Updated Saturday, Oct. 15, 2022 | 11:14 p.m.
The only thing you could nitpick the Golden Knights on through their first two wins was the starts to those contests.
It didn't take long for Vegas to get off on the right foot this time. Keegan Kolesar scored 12 seconds into the game, and Jonathan Marchessault added two more goals to propel the Golden Knights to a 5-2 win over the Seattle Kraken at Climate Pledge Arena on Saturday and start the season 3-0-0.
It's the third time in franchise history Vegas has won its first three games to start the season, joining the inaugural season in 2017-18 and the 56-game COVID schedule in 2021.
Adin Hill made 31 saves in his Vegas debut after Logan Thompson started the first two games. Hill carried a shutout deep into the third period before Justin Schultz scored Seattle's first goal of the game. Thompson had a 27-save shutout on Thursday in Vegas' home opener, a 1-0 win over the Chicago Blackhawks.
"I felt pretty good," said Hill, who made his first start since March 12 as a member of the San Jose Sharks. The Golden Knights acquired Hill on Aug. 30 in a trade with San Jose. "It’s nice when your team scores 12 seconds into the game. It settles the nerves a little bit."
The wins over Los Angeles on Tuesday, followed by the Chicago game, followed the same pattern for the Golden Knights. They were outshot in the first period of both games and trailed in one of them. It wasn't until the second period Vegas started to find its game, be aggressive on the forecheck and take over in the offensive end.
The Golden Knights were outshot 11-9 in the first period Saturday with Hill stopping all 11 shots, but they got out to a 2-0 lead within the first 3:07. Kolesar's goal came after William Carrier forced a turnover along the wall and found Kolesar for a one-timer in front, marking the second-fastest goal in team history (William Karlsson scored 10 seconds in against Colorado on April 28).
Marchessault scored his first goal nearly three minutes later on the power play to make it 2-0. Alex Pietrangelo kept the loose puck in the offensive zone and found Nicolas Roy, who held it long enough on the right side before pulling Kraken goalie Martin Jones away from the crease. He found Marchessault alone across from him for the goal.
"It’s good for the guys to taste success early," coach Bruce Cassidy said. "I think everyone’s chasing that early. You don’t want to be behind, and I think we’ve been full value. I don’t think our starts in L.A. and against Chicago were great. They weren’t bad, but putting the other team on their heels and scoring early, that always helps."
Vegas added three more in the second period, starting with Reilly Smith at 13:55 to make it 3-0 for the second power-play goal of the night. Marchessault added his second tally from a sharp angle at the goal line less than four minutes later, and Shea Theodore capped off the frame with a shot from the high slot to make it 5-0.
Jones, who faced Vegas many times as a member of the Sharks, was pulled for the ninth time in 24 starts all-time against the Golden Knights after the second period. Philipp Grubauer stopped all six shots he saw in the final 20 minutes.
"The start was something we wanted to focus on after the last game," Theodore said. "Being up 2-0 early set the tone and I thought we kind of jumped on them."
Jack Eichel had two assists, and Phil Kessel picked up his first point as a member with the Golden Knights with an assist on Theodore's goal.
Vegas was out-attempted 57-44 at 5-on-5, but that wide margin came from Seattle trying to push for offense in the third period. Two areas that the Golden Knights came into this season with question marks surrounding them — the fourth line and the power play — delivered when needed.
The Golden Knights will try to tie their best start in franchise history Tuesday in Calgary against a revamped Flames team that is also off to a strong start through two games.
"This is a good start for us right now," Kolesar said. "We still feel like we can play a lot better than we did there. For us, things are looking in the right direction."
Danny Webster can be reached at 702-259-8814 or [email protected]. Follow Danny on Twitter at twitter.com/DannyWebster21.
