(Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)
In case you needed one, the Golden Knights reminded us on Monday night that they really enjoy blocking shots. They finished 3rd in the NHL this season with 1,506 blocks and got right back to it in Game 1.
The Golden Knights blocked 0 shots in the 1st period. They blocked 20 in the 2nd and 3rd combined.
That's how you earn the first road Game 1 victory in team history.
— SinBin.vegas (@SinBinVegas) April 23, 2024
Game 1 game-winning goal scorer Brayden McNabb nearly set a record for the most blocks by a Golden Knight in a playoff game with 8 (Alec Martinez had 9 in Game 6 vs COL). William Karlsson and Nic Roy lead all forwards with two blocks a piece and eight different Golden Knights registered at least one blocked shot.
Blocked Shots In Playoffs Since 2018
- Vegas: 1,637 (89 Games)
- Tampa: 1,600 (99 Games)
- Dallas: 1,192 (67 Games)
- Boston: 1,189 (76 Games)
- Colorado: 1,138 (71 Games)
Since the 2018 postseason, the Golden Knights lead all franchises in blocked shots and blocked shots per game. Reserve defenseman Alec Martinez is second in the NHL in playoff blocked shots (194) since the 2018 postseason. McNabb is just behind him (192) and will likely pass Martinez tonight in Game 2. Fellow blueliners Alex Pietrangelo is fifth (173) and rounding out the Top 15 is Shea Theodore (129) and Zach Whitecloud (124) since the 2018 playoffs. All have raised the Stanley Cup, multiple times for some.
Vegas even added to their historical team average in Monday’s 4-3 Game 1 victory.
Blocked Shots Per Playoff Game Since 2018
- Vegas: 17.76
- NYI: 17.58
- NAS: 17.26
- DAL: 17.02
- NYR: 16.48
Even though they know it’s coming, the Stars will likely struggle finding shooting lanes tonight. Plus, once frustration sets in, Pete DeBoer’s team won’t be able to stop themselves. Dallas will take inaccurate, ill advised shots down the wing and from the point allowing Vegas to simply absorb the puck and quickly exit the zone. This isn’t the first time we’ve followed a Pete DeBoer coached team.
When shots can’t make it through to the net, the more annoying it can get for an offensively gifted team that relies on creating havoc in front of the goal like the Stars.
Of course, blocking shots can lead to injuries, obstructed goaltenders, or unlucky bounces so there’s no guarantee it’ll go as swimmingly for VGK in Game 2 ad it did Game 1 (and most of last year’s WCF). But, that’s not going to stop the Golden Knights. It was a large part of the championship success last season and continues to be in 2024. After all, Stanley Cup winning Golden Knights declared last summer ‘It Hurts To Win.” We’re still waiting for the new slogan, but the old one isn’t going away any time soon.
Jay
No, you win stanley cups by cheating the salary cap by magically having players get healthy for game ones!!
JB
Wha, wha, wha. Want a little cheese with that whine? Ha ha
jay
No, it’s just too bad you have a team that all North America thinks are a run by a couple of slimeball cheaters!
knights fan in minny
get lost stupid shit no one cares what you say
jay
and everybody thinks your team is a bunch of slimy cheaters…
knights fan in minny
read the fucking rules you whiney little bitch tampa did it with kucherov chicago did it with kane so shove it up your ass jay
jay
The rules say you can come back from ltir. The rules don’t say you can cheat and put people on ltir and have a miracle occur every year that they are healthy for game 1 on the playoffs. That’s cheating. Whenever anyone thinks of your cup wins the first thing out of their mouths isn’t how talented you are – it’s how you cheat!!
Tim
jay. Would you consider Stone’s partially severed spleen a minor injury or Petro’s appendectomy a minor surgery? Jealousy is one thing downright stupidity is a whole different ballgame.
jay
and being naive is being stupid too. They might have been real injuries, if you believed that they recovered just in time for game 1 makes you stupid. You sure they weren’t ready to play game 81 or 82? If they were then your team would have had to cut some players, I.e. the ones they picked up at the trade deadline by using Stones salary.
knights fan in minny
go find some friends you piece of shit loser jay
jay
almost all of North America thinks the same as me, you guys cheat! Miracles can’t happen every year that your stars recover just in time for game 1!!
knights fan in minny
get bent loser jay
hdbiker7851
Jay – Jealousy is a form of flattery if you haven’t figured that out yet.
former season ticket holder
Oh my God, the amount of cry babies across all different platforms like YouTube, Facebook,X, and Reddit! All these hypocrites are all crying about the same thing, yet not stopping to think about how their home team could do this very same thing. And their own team doesn’t say no. Because they know they want to be able to do the same thing down the road. So cry baby cry cry, baby cry.
jay
except most teams have more honor then your team!! It’s called ch
knights fan in minny
more honor oh boy
jay
Except most teams have more honor then you, they don’t cheat like you when you hide someone on LTIR that recovers every year just in time for game 1
knights fan in minny
no one was hid dumb ass the nhl was in on the monitoring of the injuries so take your whiny ass elsewhere
jay
You must be about the stupidest hockey fan I have ever tried to have a discussion with…
knights fan in minny
nobody on here wants to have a conversation with you go talk to your dog or the mirror dick head
knights fan in minny
according to vegas hockey now some line up changes
ThG
hague out, marty likely in
howden likely out, cotter in
carrier likely out, davo in
but check pre game skate for sure.
ThG
nhl starting line ups only show change indicated in line 1 above