Golden Knights Gameday
Golden Knights Gameday 34: No Jack: Lines and Notes vs Sabres
LAS VEGAS— The Vegas Golden Knights (22-10-1, 45 points) are in danger of having a losing home ice record as their most recent loss…
LAS VEGAS— The Vegas Golden Knights (22-10-1, 45 points) are in danger of having a losing home ice record as their most recent loss puts them at 8-8 at T-Mobile Arena. Tonight they play the Buffalo Sabres (15-14-2, 32 points) at 7:00 p.m.
After taking a puck to the leg the other night against the New York Islanders, Mark Stone was at practice Monday and is expected to play. None of Brett Howden, Jack Eichel, or Shea Theodore were removed by the team from IR, and with the NHL roster freeze in motion until after Christmas, it looks like none of these players will play in the next few games.
This is game two of the season series against the Sabres for the Golden Knights. Their first game was a 7-4 in Buffalo, also known as the "Jack Eichel revenge game." The Sabres are coming off a 5-2 road win against the Arizona Coyotes and have won three straight.
What To Watch For
Don't Force Skilled Plays
The VGK have only scored four five-on-five goals in their last six games at home. Head coach Bruce Cassidy says he wants his team to start games similar to how they do on the road by not forcing skilled plays.
"You can't expect at puck drop just to come up and make a tic tac toe play. It's just not gonna happen against good teams. You might get away with it periodically, but most nights, you are not… So we're gonna keep pounding away on, and at some point, I hope the guys are sick of frickin losing in this building and that play the right way," said Cassidy.
No Jack
The last time the Golden Knights played the Buffalo Sabres, Jack Eichel went off against his former team, scoring a hat-trick and four points in the third period alone. But Eichel remains out with a lower-body injury and will not play against the Sabres in Vegas. So the VGK will have to adjust not only to not having their best player in the lineup but also not having that extra motivation to win for Eichel.
Third Line Improvements
The Golden Knights have been in search of a more consistent third line all season. Last game, the line of Jonas Rondbjerg, Jake Leschyshyn, and Michael Amadio had some strong chances and perhaps their best game of the season for all of them.
They will need to build off this game and potentially get a bonus goal for the VGK, as the three players have two points combined.
Projected Vegas Golden Knights Line Combinations
Phil Kessel- Chandler Stephenson- Mark Stone (c)
Reilly Smith- William Karlsson- Jonathan Marchessault
Jonas Rondbjerg- Jake Leschyshyn- Michael Amadio
William Carrier- Nicolas Roy- Keegan Kolesar
Ben Hutton- Alex Pietrangelo
Alec Martinez- Nicolas Hague
Brayden McNabb- Daniil Miromanov
Adin Hill/Logan Thompson
Golden Knights Special Teams
PP1: Stephenson, Stone, Marchessault, Smith, Pietrangelo
PP2: Carrier, Karlsson, Kessel, Roy, Miromanov
PK1: Karlsson, Smith, Martinez, Pietrangelo
PK2: Stephenson, Stone, McNabb, Hague
IR/Scratches
Zach Whitecloud, Paul Cotter, Brett Howden, Jack Eichel, Shea Theodore
Projected Sabres Line Combinations
Jeff Skinner- Tage Thompson- Alex Tuch
JJ Peterka- Dylan Cozens- Jack Quinn
Tyson Jose- Casey Mittelstadt- Victor Olofsson
Zemgus Girgensons- Peyton Krebs- Kyle Okposo
Kale Clague- Rasmus Dahlin
Mattias Samuelsson- Lawrence Pilut
Jeremy Davies- Casey Fitzgerald
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen/Craig Anderson
Sabres Special Teams
PP1- Tuch, Cozens, Skinner, Thompson, Dahlin
PP2- Peterka, Mittelstadt, Quinn, Clague, Olofsson
PK1- Jost, Okposo, Samuelsson, Dahlin
PK2- Cozens, Peterka, Fitzgerald, Pilut
IR/Scratches
Eric Comrie, Ilya Lyubushkin, Owen Power, Jacob Bryson/Vinnie Hinostroza, Rasmus Asplund, Jeremy Davies
How to Watch/Listen
7:00 p.m. on AT&T Sportsnet, ESPN+ and Fox Sports 98.9 FM Radio.