Vegas take 1-0 win and series lead over Kings

In Las Vegas Wednesday night, the Golden Knights posted their first Stanley Cup Playoff victory, 1-0, over the Los Angeles Kings.

The Knights hold a 1-0 series lead in their first game and first series, because, of course they do.

“We’re playing a good team, and we’ve been playing a good game all year long. Obviously it’s going to be very physical, but it’s a one-goal game and there’s going to be a lot of physicality. But I thought we handled it well,” the Knights’ Pierre Edouard-Bellemare said after the win.

Marc-Andre Fleury made 30 saves to get the shutout.

“It’s the best time of the year. It’s the best hockey,” Golden Knights forward Jonathan Marchessault said. “I think we were really pleased with how our team played. It’s what we’re living for.”

Shea Theodore struck for the game’s only goal at 3:23 of the first period.

“It’s exciting to score the first goal,” Theodore said. “Obviously, it gets our crowd and fans into it. It was an exciting moment.”

This was anything but a gentle welcome for the Knights as a franchise to the playoffs.

The Kings outhit the Knights 68-59 to make up for the limited offense.

“A 1-0 game may be a little tougher to swallow than anything else,” the Kings’ Anze Kopitar said. “We definitely had chances. You’ve just got to cash in on them. We know we can play better, and we’ll have to in Game 2 if we want to go home with a split.”

[WATCH: Kings vs. Golden Knights highlights | RELATED: Complete Golden Knights vs. Kings series coverage]

Jonathan Quick made 27 saves in the hard luck loss.

“I thought our guys played hard tonight. I thought we created some opportunities to get some offense. We’ve got to make it a lot tougher for [Fleury] to see the puck. I’d like to see us improve in certain areas,” Kings head coach John Stevens said after the game.