On The Strip, the Golden Knights hosted the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday in a test of wills and standings position. The Knights edged out a 3-2 win to snap a four-game skid.
Logan Thompson made 32 saves in the win.
“It’s been a long, hard month, especially for the goalies here. So that’s a good two points to finish it, a step in the right direction,” Thompson said. “We haven’t been happy with ourselves, but I think the guys [have] been playing well. We’ve been putting forth some good efforts offensively. The plan was to just get back to our game plan, just playing defense first, and [the Kings are] a good road team. I think we played well tonight.”
Vegas improved to 22-10-5.
The Golden Knights next play in the Winter Classic in Seattle on 1 January.
“I’m looking forward to all of it. The family skate is the day before, which is a great memory for all the kids and parents and whoever can make it,” Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said. “The players tend to have some sort of theme as they show up and how they dress, there’s all those things that go into it. Spending New Years together with your family and hockey family, you get to merge those for a big occasion. There’s nothing but good involved.”
Vegas took a 2-0 lead with goals in the first and second periods.
Jack Eichel staked the Knights to a 1-0 lead at 7:38 of the opening stanza.
Michael Amadio pushed the lead out to 2-0 at 2:27 of the middle frame.
“I really thought the second goal killed us,” LA coach Todd McLellan said. “There was nothing going on in that rush or in that play, then all of a sudden Amadio got a breakaway, so that hurts.”
LA dropped to 20-8-4,
“They did an outstanding job of blocking shots and clearing the net, which they’re very good at,” McLellan said. “I think the disappointing part for me is the type of goals we gave up. And you can be connected offensively, but also defensively. When a team commits like that to defending and blocks in front and do the things they did around the net, you can’t give them gifts.”
Anze Kopitar trimmed the deficit to 2-1 at 13:07 of the second period.
William Karlsson restored the two-goal, and the game-winner, at 14:42, 3-1.
Trevor Moore scored with just under two minutes left on the game clock for the final count of 3-2.
Cam Talbot made 29 saves in the loss.
“I wouldn’t say we played a bad game, but we could have definitely been sharper and, you know, connect on more plays, which probably would have resulted with a few more chances,” Kopitar said. ”Maybe we could have squeezed one more by connecting on plays a little bit better. I guess being cleaner all over the ice.”
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