Recap: The Golden Knights hosted the Colorado Avalanche for their second measuring stick game of the season. Colorado took control of the 1st period outshooting Vegas 11-5 and taking the early lead on a power play opportunity. However, the Golden Knights drew a penalty of their own and tied the game 1-1 before the opening 20 minutes expired.
Colorado took advantage of another PP opportunity breaking the tie 6:23 into the middle frame. Vegas had several chances of their own but couldn’t find the back of the net. After 40 minutes the Avalanche held a tight 2-1 advantage.
Vegas began the 3rd period on the power play, but they couldn’t even the score. Colorado took a two-goal lead but midway through the frame on a nifty goal by Val Nischushkin. Chandler Stephenson scored to make it a 3-2 contest. Vegas fought to the final second but couldn’t find the equalizer.
The Golden Knights record drops to 4-2-0 losing their first matchup 3-2 against the Avalanche this season. Vegas will try and bounce back on Monday night against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Puck drop from T-Mobile Arena is scheduled for 7 PM. (Recap by Jason)
Analysis: Colorado lived in the Vegas end for a good portion of the 1st period which led to very little offense for the Golden Knights. However, the escaped it with just a power play goal a side. It improved a bit in the 2nd and then much more in the 3rd as Vegas pushed back hard and made a game of it. Outscored on the power play and an awesome individual play on the other end were the difference. (Recap by Ken)
Upcoming stories from the Vegas Golden Knights vs. Colorado Avalanche at T-Mobile Arena.
- Assessing the special teams early on
Ken’s Three VGK Stars
*** Mark Stone
** Jonathan Marchessault
* Chandler Stephenson
Cassidy loading up late here. Eichel with Stone and Stephenson.
— SinBin.vegas (@SinBinVegas) October 23, 2022
Moments ago I was considering tweeting about VGK's improvement in the NZ as this game has gone on. Then they allow Nichushkin to completely undress them and maybe ice the game.
— SinBin.vegas (@SinBinVegas) October 23, 2022
And just like that. We are tied.
19 minutes erased by one very nice play by Mark Stone on a goofy hop.
Now, reset in the intermission and don't have a period like that ever again.
— SinBin.vegas (@SinBinVegas) October 23, 2022
Pistol Pete
Give the imo small edge to COL on that one but nevertheless could have gone either way.
Pistol Pete
Yeah I know. It did go the way of COL. Move on to TOR Monday.
Pistol Pete
That VGK PP late in the second. My goodness so close to evening it up at 2-2. Would have meant all four goals up to that point would have been PP. As I said, close game, could have gone either way.
Richie-Rich
You are such a positive guy (small edge to COL). Come on man. They were on a back to back and skated circles around the VGK in that first period allowing a paltry 2 shots on goal. They also were without Landeskog.
Sorry, but the gap between the VGK and COL is a lot wider than a small edge despite how close the score was.
Pistol Pete
Cassidy late game tweak:
Stephenson/Eichel/Stone
Smith/Karlsson/Marchsesault
Amadio/Howden/Kessel
Carrier/Roy/Kolesar
Nice pass Eichel below the goal line to Stephenson to make it 3-2. Following that a near goal by the Misfits.
Duckboy
Was at the game. Never felt like we could win.
Amadio / howden / kessel line should be called the surrender line. As in we are surrendering the chance to score the entire time they are on the ice.
Richie-Rich
Yeah, I saw that adjustment (poor decision). Kessel too often was chasing. He is a liability on defense. There are players on the Henderson team who can bring what he is to the ice. Complete waste of a roster spot in my opinion. I can name at least 3 who deserve that spot.
As far as Howden and Amadio are concerned, I think Cotter is the better choice than either of them. Cotter and Howden are both LW, which presents somewhat of a lineup problem.
Cotter has played in 4 games, Amadio in 3. Cotter is a year younger and ten pounds heavier. he brings a lot more in terms of toughness. Amadio has been a pro since 2017 and hasn’t scored more than 11 goals/18 points. I am sorry, but Amadio is trade bait! Just my opinion.
Cotter needs to be out there on the ice as a regular.
Richie-Rich
Note to Cassidy. Take that late game tweak and burn it.
Sorvino
A little bit slow getting out of the gate but by the end of the game I felt better about the matchup against the champs.
Michael
Remember Colorado were on a B2B and are missing Landeskog. Positive performance but they still have some levels left.
Sorvino
Very valid points.
knights fan in minny
put it in the rear view mirror and move on to the next game logan was good the lanche could have had 5 or 6
Richie-Rich
I bet Logan would play that Nichuskin goal differently if given another opportunity. A 1 on 4 became a breakaway 1 on none due to shitty defensive positioning and a lack of aggressiveness. That called for LT to come out and poke check, instead he slid back giving up more shooting opportunity.
Henderson One
Like the goal play and adjustments Cassidy makes as he sees the chemistry and combinations that work in real games. 10 Million Dollar man still a disappointment when compared with other stars of equal value. However, it is a long season.
THE hockey GOD
So it seems it’s not PDB fault, or paralysis, after all !
Pretty obvious whitey is not 100%
Kolesar only had nine minutes
and finally the AVS seem to play Cassidy’s “system” better than VGK.
Two out of last three games the coach did not have the players ready to go.
Duckboy
Definately felt flat from the players as I watched. No urgency or passion/emotion.
Richie-Rich
This team has no identity, no history and a brand new coach. I am extremely critical, but I also understand that you cannot build an identity or chemistry if the front office and the coach are continuously manipulating the roster and lineup. There’s no consistency on the ice because there isn’t any consistency in the locker room.
The shiny new toy strategy has done nothing in terms of bringing The Cup to Vegas. It has only served to create chaos in identity and team chemistry.
I don’t see the VGK making the playoffs this year unless they can solidify that identity and chemistry and do it sooner rather than later. I think guys like Cotter and others on the Henderson Club look at the Kessel move and just shake their heads in wonder. There are too many players deserving of that spot than Kessel whose career is pretty much over.
THE hockey GOD
i don’t see much help from HSK or non playing roster players, the only draft product produced to date is captain of Habs. And he’s doing ok.
Cotter played his way of out the starting line up. Amadio had a boost day.
The two K’s haven’t done much.
Other franchises have made a lot more moves than VGK in same time frame. VGK is about in middle of league on roster moves.
They may move a goalie as Croussant is about ready to come back waiting for doctor/trainer go ahead.
Maybe a multi player deal is due.?
Sorvino
I’ll say it again. The coaching change was probably needed but both DeBoer and Cassidy are very good coaches. They all have a shelf life. We will be running Cassidy out of town in about three years.
Michael
Excellent point. Sports often becomes more about scapegoating than it needs to be.
Sorvino
Positives about yesterday’s game and there are some.
Mark Stone had his best game of the year and is “slowly” getting back to his old self.
The goaltending continues to be strong.
Richie-Rich
Valeri Nichushkin skates through all three zones as he gets around the defender on the backhand, crashes the net and chips it glove side.
The Guilty: McNabb, Kessel, Theodore and Smith and Thompson who instead of coming out to challenge Valeri and try a poke check slid backwards into the crease opening up his glove side.
Marchy gets a pass as he was deep in the Avs OZ and was knocked down. Still, he tried to catch him, almost did but then skated off to the bench when it was apparent he wasn’t going to catch him.
This was the game winner. Nearly a coast-to-coast 1 on 4. Nichushkin should get the play of the week award for that one. Absolutely disgraceful.
Lack of puck management, poor passing/turnovers especially by Petro. The Avalanche looked like the better team for most of this game, and that was without Landeskog! The lack of toughness is clearly evident, especially in front of both nets.
Eichel got a point, but overall I remain unimpressed. At one point, after being crumpled like a wet noodle in the OZ behind the net he lazily got to his feet and skated off “slowly” towards his bench as the Avs were on a counter-attack further delaying someone else getting off the bench. (Actually caused a mini-power play for the Avs).
Not yet a Cup contending caliber team.
https://www.nhl.com/video/nichushkin-buries-end-to-end-goal/t-335441736/c-13311511
THE hockey GOD
“after being crumpled like a wet noodle in the OZ behind the net he lazily got to his feet ” yeah 99% of players have a hard time getting back to bench after being crunched like a wet noodle. Nothing new here.
Richie-Rich
You get off your ass and get back to your bench. That’s what motivated team players do.
Sorvino
Richie Rich, The guy who basically fought tooth and nail with team doctors in Buffalo to have the surgery that he wanted so he can come back and play as soon as possible and then returning last year and playing the last few weeks of the season with a broken hand and not complaining about it. You think that guy lacks motivation???
I do agree with you that the turnover on this team is just too much. Hopefully they just stick to what they have for a while and incorporate guys like Cotter and Hayes into this lineup. They are in salary cap hell so they probably have no choice but to stick with the same roster for a while.
Richie-Rich
Eichel wasn’t hit that hard, did not appear to be in any pain other than being frustrated. Or was he? He got up fairly quickly as Colorado was making a rush into the VGK zone. I didn’t much in terms of him wanting to get to the bench. It’s just one incident. I was in the crowd right behind Georgiev and the entire crowd was screaming for him to get to the fucking bench. So yeah, on that particular play he was fucking lazy. It has nothing to do with his surgery or wanting to get back to the ice to play for Vegas. Or just fucking maybe $10,000,000 for what 8 years had something to do with it?
As I said, the jury is still out as far as Eichel goes with me. I have already gone out and got #43 and COTTER for my Gold Jersey. The jury is in with me. He may not get 100 points, but he is going to be good and there is no question whatsoever about his desire and motivations.
END BITCH
THE hockey GOD
@ RR
so was he crumpled like a wet noodle or wasn’t he?
The story keeps changing ! Hyperbole abounds with endless orders of magnitude !
no 21 also got wounded , and could barely make it to the bench. Seems like a lot of VGK players were getting crunched.
knights fan in minny
nuschky undressed mcnabb on that goal
Richie-Rich
Yep, McNabb was the primary guilty party on that game winning goal.
Tim
My eyes saw two goaltenders who were both, good McKinnan vs Eichel no contest, and there third goal where he walzed in all alone was unexceptable. Our PK has given up two goals against Calgary and Colorado and that’s been the difference in winning and losing. On the other hand as the company line says our PP is a work in progress.
Richie-Rich
If I am an Avs fan I give all 3 stars to the dumbass ref who called the first tripping/hooking penalty. That was an obvious embellishment, falling to the ice on purpose to draw the penalty.
Who gets stars? I would give them to each Knight involved in the 2 goals scored. I would give a star to Thompson because he played great most of the game EXCEPT on the Valeri 1 on 4 that turned into a breakaway goal. Sliding back into your crease on a breakaway only serves to create more opportunities for the shooter. He who shall not be named would have come out and poke checked that shit away from danger.
Richie-Rich
Let’s take another look at the 1st period. Despite the bullshit penalty and power play goal, the Knights had but 2 shots on goal through nearly most of the period. TWO! Colorado, on a back-to-back, completely dominated 200 feet of ice for nearly 95% of the entire first period.
Not a Cup contending performance in the first period, or in this game.
Cassidy has done a great job given what he has. Eichel’s $11 million per year contract is still a question, and the team is lacking in toughness. If they are in the mix at the trade deadline they should be looking for an answer to that problem.
I think Hayes, Miromanov and Pachal are 3 players who will bring some toughness.
DocDG
1. I was wondering when someone would mention the most glaring thing about the game. 16 minutes between shots on goal in the 1st period is not an acceptable offensive performance. It was a miracle that we were tied after one period, Colorado dominated us on both ends of the ice until our power play.
2. I sit near the ice on the end where Eichel got creamed and saw the whole thing start to finish. He was slow to get up and looked like he was disoriented when he did get up then slowly skated to the bench and seemed to have trouble getting off the ice. Thinking back to the dark ages when I experienced that kind of a hit in football I think it’s wrong to blame him for being human, the body and brain sometimes need time to reset themselves after experiencing that kind of a shock.
3. Thompson was outstanding again, both power play goals he gave up were perfect shots that hit the the post and went in. I would not call either of them “Bad goals”. The 3rd one was a breakaway on defensive errors. So far this season our goalies are both fine, all they really need is for the offence to figure out how to score some 5 on 5 goals.
THE hockey GOD
@ docDG
thank you
Sorvino
Richie-Rich. Eichel’s contract is 10, million per year not 11 million per year.
Eichel is here and he is not going anywhere. Are we just gonna whine about it every single day because he makes 10, million per year.
I didn’t think it was the best move to make at the time but I understand the logic. they are constantly trying to improve and one of the big weaknesses on this team was strength at center. He’s part of this team and I’m not gonna freak out if he gets 37 goals instead of 47 goals. Did they potentially make themselves a weaker team by making the trade? It’s possible but that has nothing to do with Eichel, he didn’t make the trade.
Bottom line is that he will get more points this season than any other Vegas Golden Knight ever did in a single season. I’ve got him pegged for something like 39G 53A 92 points. He is going to be the best forward in franchise history. Will he be worth 10 million, probably not?
Am I gonna hear about it every single day from the fan base that he is overpaid? Annoyingly yes!
Richie Rich, i’m sorry he didn’t get up fast enough for your liking after getting crumpled like a wet noodle.
Did you notice that he set up Chandler Stephenson with a beautiful pass for a goal?
Man you are a whiny bitch. I just read your post again and I noticed in the last line that you were complaining about Logan Thompson of all people for not poke checking Valeri Nishkushkin on his goal. First of all. Really? We’re going to complain about Logan Thompson now?
And then the most laughable part was your quote, “He who shall not be named would have come out and poke checked that shit away from danger..”
You are advocating for Marc-André Fleury who is by an extremely ridiculously far distance, the worst goalie in the NHL so far???
Ladies and gentlemen, this is an example of a fan that will never be happy and keep living in the past.
Logan Thompson and Adin Hill to this point have been above average, very good.
Jack Eichel has been okay. I wasn’t expecting McDavid or McKinnon since he was never McDavid or McKinnon before. I’d like to see a little more offence from him but he still leads the team in points.
Richie Rich, stop being a bitch!
FYI…. Actually watch the next Minnesota Wild game. If you want to laugh try watching MAF try to stop pucks.
Tim
Sorvino, I’m not as worried about his contract as I am what he does on the ice. Truthfully he doesn’t look any different then our other centers or forwards. The rub here is Suzuki is a captain and it looks like Alex Tuch will captain the Sabres now don’t you find it interesting that two former players that we traded will captain another team. Back to Jack I’m not saying it’s nice having him what I’m saying is the hype doesn’t equal output.
THE hockey GOD
VGK had no answer for Erik Johnson who was a demon on defense all night long.
Richie-Rich
As a fan and season ticket holder, the jury is in on McIdiot as far as I am concerned. I do like the Cassidy move, but I didn’t like the firing of Gallant in the first place. PDB wasn’t a bad coach, but bringing him in was in poor taste (in my opinion) from a fan perspective and I also believe that it fucked up the team chemistry (regardless of what might be said otherwise).
The lack of team chemistry and consistency is a problem that McIdiot created and I long for the day he is gone.
Richie-Rich
I am simply saying that LT should learn a lesson from that mistake, that’s all. He’s been spectacular in net.
Another point, Marchy is only making $5 million and thus far is matching Eichel point-for-point. Eichel has 7, Marhcy 6. Over the long haul I will take Marchy’s plus/minus over the Flashy Ripper. So far, Eichel’s a plus 4 and that was a surprising stat. If he can hold that then fine, but I am not convinced that he deserves top Center pay. I’m not getting into an argument with you over Cap mismanagement because it isn’t one you can win.
MAF is history. I only pointed out the experience he had in being able to defend breakaways with poke checks. I am completely 100% satisfied with Logan Thompson and believe he will be in net, barring injury, for many more years.
I still suspect Eichel to be a I player, not a team player. He has to change my mind on that account. It’s still early. I am not being a “bitch”. I am simply stating my opinion based on what I see on the ice. You weren’t expecting McDavid or McKinnon? Well, for $10 million I sure the fuck am. If he’s not in that category then why the fuck did McIdiot give him that contract? Time will tell. It’s way too early to make the call. A point per game is going to get him to 90+ points. He’s barely over 1 pt. I want to see game changing, game winning performances for that salary. So, if that makes me a bitch then fine. I am a bitch paying $14 grand for the privilege.
When I am wrong, I will admit it. Yeah, Eichel’s making only a measly $10 million not 11. My bad. If you don’t like my posts, I couldn’t care less. Your name calling is unwarranted.
LVsc
the VGK did NOT give Eichel that contract…he was signed to that contract by Buffalo mgmt, namely Jason Botterill on Oct 3, 2017
the contract, signed 5 years ago, has 3 years left to go after this season.
Richie-Rich
I stand corrected. But still not worth $10,000,000 in my opinion. He’s a UFA after the 2025 season, so the hope is that Jack will carry this team to a Cup in that time frame.
We shall see.
Sorvino
Richie Rich you said that when you were wrong you would admit it. I wanted to also point out that in your statement,
“If Eichel’s not in that category of mcDavid and McKinnon then why the fuck did McIdiot give him that contract?”
This is also factually incorrect. McCrimmon did not give Eichel that contract. Eichel signed that contract with the Buffalo Sabres.
LVsc
no, it was effin McNabb who allowed 13 to walk right around him and score what proved to be the deciding goal. ………shades of game 7 vs SJ when McNabb allowed crappy Goodrow to walk right around him untouched and score the series winning goal in OT.
LVsc
really poor PK coverage of the circles by the Vgk. and not just in this game…. if that is John Stevens running the PK, then he needs some blame, cuz they are paying no attention to the most dangerous guys on the PP, the one timer shooters in the circles. it is a joke that they are allowed to shoot unmolested and uncovered by a forward, while the dman simply screens his own goalie on the shot.
THE hockey GOD
@LVsc on both AV PP goals no. 61 was out there, on second one no. 20 and no61 were on PK. I have no idea why no. 61 is on the PK.
Both AV player shots were bombs, and it doesn’t look like D men were screening goalie on either PP goals. Go back and watch replays.
THE hockey GOD
@LVs in practice at Summerlin, they practice the PP on both ends of ice. Not much
on PK except four players in dark sweaters. And they just stand around. All the coaches are involved. Not one coach. As they have one coach at one end and other coach at other end. When you have a chance you should come to practice to see how it is done. The head coach is main guy blowing the whistle.
Canada
We were flat footed and the Avs were amped up after the worst team in the league kicked their butt. Lots of mistakes ,we lost most of the battles and we were one step behind them all night . The score could have been much worse . I am not prepared to say we can’t beat Calgary and we can’t beat the Avs … we lose by one goal and we had two bad periods in both games As Cassidy get his lines figured out all we can ask for at this point is a honest consistent effort and they need to pick it up . We can absoloutly make the play offs with this team. With a little brotherly love in the dressing oom the kind where they hold each other accountable . Remember the country club atmosphere reference if that truly exist that crap needs to dissappear and any players who have that mentality need to go TODAY.
THE hockey GOD
@ canada, “Remember the country club atmosphere reference ” don’t believe the fake news ! The local yokels three or four person press guild stirs the pot all the time.
JV
Wish they could ban all political ads during hockey broadcasts.
TS
JV, I SECOND THAT!!
Jim
the good news is that the 6 bottom teams in the Pacific division right now have a total of 9 wins and 28 losses.
That is Sea, LA, Edm, Ana, Van, and SJ
top 2 teams in div right now are Calgary and VGK with 8 pts each. they are the only teams in the Pac div that are over .500 record
Pacific Division
W L OT Pts
Calgary Flames 4 1 0 8
Vegas GK 4 2 0 8
Seattle Kraken 2 3 2 6
Los Angeles Kings 3 4 0 6
Edmonton Oilers 2 3 0 4
Anaheim Ducks 1 3 1 3
Vancouver Canucks 0 4 2 2
San Jose Sharks 1 6 0 2
George T
Eichel is the most expensive 4th liner in the NHL, but we put him on the first line.
We need a refund of at least 9 million
Richie-Rich
LMAO! This a good one. The good news is that there isn’t much more damage McIdiot can do to this team. Eichel is either going to be a 90+ point player and bring a Cup to Vegas or not by 2025-2026.
That’s a 3 year experiment. Most of the roster stars will be in their mid-30s or older by then. What does this mean?
It means that what you see is pretty much what you get with few options to make the team better. They win a Cup in the next 3 years or not.
This means the planning and execution of the rebuild starts now. The problem with that is the fact that McIdiot is still employed. Foley would want a new GM to come in to start that rebuild. Personally, I think this is McCrimmon’s final year.
Pistol Pete
Don’t know what to tell you Richie-Rich other than I carefully watched this game and Calgary and feel they were both winnable. Let’s see how it goes Monday vs. the Leafs.
Richie-Rich
The fact is that the VGK got outplayed for 40 minutes by both Calgary and Winnipeg, even though they won the game. I would say that they did better against Colorado. Colorado dominated the VGK in period 1, they were pretty much even in periods 2 and 3 other than the major defensive breakdown on the Nichuskin breakaway.
I think we all need to look at the standings with a skeptical eye right now. I like where they are at there, but not overly pleased with the performance. Can this team continue to win, make the playoffs by playing ugly week after week?
I am overly critical and with that will say that I am pleasantly surprised with the way they are playing so far. I just simply think that they have a long way to go before I believe they are playoff caliber.
Pistol Pete
Maybe Kessel will get #400 and go on a run silencing the naysayers. His career average is 60 pts getting 29 pts @19, 36 pts @ 20 and 60 pts @ 21 (and that’s an Oct 2 b’day). Cotter is about to turn 23 and has 3 pts. I would like to see Kessel and Cotter as wingers on a Howden line. Could be some mentoring potential there.
Richie-Rich
So, you’re centers are 1-Eichel, 2-Stephenson, 3-Karlsson and 4-Roy —–
Eichel, Marchy, Smith
Stephenson, Cotter, Kessel
Karlsson, Howden, Amadio
Roy, Kolesar, Carrier
That makes more sense….or move Cotter down to play with Karlsson and Howden up to the Stephenson line.
Pistol Pete
Don’t be surprised to see this Monday:
Stephenson/Eichel/Stone
Misfits
Cotter or Amadio/Howden/Kessler
Carrier/Roy/Kolesar
Pistol Pete
I really don’t see Kessler doing zero this season.
Richie-Rich
Sorry, I left out Stone. You would put Stone on the line 1 instead of Marchy or put him on the line in the place of Amadio. I think you get it. Kessel has to come off that top line though.
hdbiker7851
Being winnable is a long way from winning particular in Vegas’ case. Loose by one or ten the result is the same. That third goal made Vegas look pretty sick. Not sure what Vegas had in mind on that goal as the guy skated the length of the ice while Vegas watched – literally watch.
Richie-Rich
I think Ken put the spotlight on the problem. The VGK has lived off the rush for too long. The power play appears to be much improved, but they are still not doing well 5v5, and the PK performance speaks for itself. It’s been below average and that’s being nice.
Pistol Pete
Hockey is hockey R-R. A decent season is 50-27-5 = 105 pts. You lose 32/82 = 39%. That’s nearly 4 of 10. You lose a lot of games and it’s rarely pretty.
Richie-Rich
The VGK failed to get in with 94 last year. This year they are going to need 102-105. I think they are going to have a tough time of it even if they stay healthy,
Pistol Pete
Point is expect to lose plenty and hear a load of whining lol on the road to 105.
THE hockey GOD
Why is it that after HOUSE OF DRAGONS episode I have to go to site to explain to me what it is , that I just saw ??!!? And these pundits who read the book(s) -> I didn’t-< always say "well, errrr. doh, that wasn't in the book".
PS
Can I trade in my dragon, I want a BIGGER AND BETTER ONE !
prince Daemon Targaryan is becoming my favorite but I didn't like when
he grabbed the Queen by throat giving her a history lesson. My favorite has become by far as season 1 ends, is Rhaenys Velaryon, she rocks !
THE FIFTH LINE !
Jailbird
Faults King. Rightful Queen. Dragons killing Dragons. Come on Daemon, kill them all !
Chuckles
SCORE MORE for LT. POUR IT ON not be POOR!!
Sorvino
Richie Rich you said that when you were wrong you would admit it. I wanted to also point out that in your statement,
“If Eichel’s not in that category of mcDavid and McKinnon then why the fuck did McIdiot give him that contract?”
This is also factually incorrect. McCrimmon did not give Eichel that contract. Eichel signed that contract with the Buffalo Sabres.
Sorvino
FYI Richie Rich, I like your posts. That’s why I read them. I disagree with most of what you say but I like the posts.
THE hockey GOD
@sorvino
R R is misinformed about almost everything he/she posts, and it’s been that way since day 1