Game 4 and the opportunity to close out the Los Angeles Kings and advance to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs is a big moment for the Vegas Golden Knights.
A moment from which they are not shying away.
"This is a big game. It's a huge game," said Golden Knights head coach Gerard Gallant. "Playoffs are all about momentum. Let's keep the momentum. We're playing well, we're winning hockey games. Don't look at it and say, 'well we've got four chances to win one game.' We've got to come out tonight and play our best game. That's the message from me."
And Gallant expects the Kings to have the same mindset.
"They're going to be great. We've all been there in those situations before. They're going to play their best game and they're going to work hard," said Gallant. "They've got a lot of character and a lot of leaders on their team over there, also. I think we'll see their best game. I think they played real well the other night. Every game has been a one-goal game. It's been great hockey."
Midday Fix: April 17
Golden Knights forward James Neal has had an excellent series to far including a goal and an assist. Neal says this is not "just another game."
"Well it's not just another game. It's a very important game for us, and it's do or die for them. For us, you have to stay composed, like I've been saying. Know what you're up against. We've been going through our morning feeling good. They're over there probably a little bit quieter and more focused, just can't wait to get a piece of us," said Neal. "I think knowing your opponent and knowing what you're going to come out against is very important. We'll be ready to go. They had a great start last game and we'll have to match their intensity and desperation.
"It's always nice to get the first goal, for sure. It gives you momentum. At the same time, you're going to go through different momentum swings throughout the game. I think being disciplined and being just as physical. Sticking to our game like we have and we'll be fine."
VGK forward David Perron can't wait for the puck to drop.
"It's an incredible opportunity for us. We know that we really have to take our chance tonight and go for it. I don't think we can rely on the other games if we lose this one," said Perron. "We really have to put our best foot forward. There's not a bigger game that we've played so far this year. We're extremely looking forward to it."
Key quotes from VGK coach Gerard Gallant:
You don't have a captain, but you've had great leadership in the room all year. What are your thoughts about the job they've done so far in this playoff series?
Nothing has changed from our season, to be honest with you. I stay out of the room most of the year. We've got good leaders that manage our room and manage our young players. They've done a great job, but that's from day 1. Nothing has really change with our guys. Get them ready to play and to take care of themselves.
What do you expect from David Perron and his line tonight?
Same stuff. We had our lines together when David came back and I didn't want to mess up the other lines. He played well. It was a tough start. He hadn't played in probably three weeks. To get back in there. But I thought the longer the game went, the better he got. I really liked him in the second half of the game.
What is the timetable on Luca Sbisa?
His timetable is basically day-to-day. I was told yesterday that he's doing real well. There's setbacks when you have long-term injuries. It was a minor setback, but we kept him off the ice for a few days. I'm not sure when he's going to play, but I really feel it's going to be in the near future.
What stands out about Marc-Andre Fleury this time of year?
He's the same guy everyday. It doesn't matter if you're losing games or winning games, he comes in with a good attitude and a good personality. He works hard every day. He has fun at the rink and that's what I'm all about. I want to have some fun when you come to the rink. You come to work and when you can enjoy work. When you're winning games it's a lot of fun, but he's a quality character guy and he plays well all the time for us. He's a key guy.
How do you feel like Jonathan Marchessault has handled being one of your top five players?
Good. He took a couple of retaliatory penalties and we talked about that. You can't do that during the playoffs. They're going to be on the top players and that's the way that playoff hockey is. Marchy is a good player for us. He's a character guy and he'll learn some lessons in playoffs.
How physical is this series?
I think it's been physical, but I don't think it's over the top. There's some hard hits. Every game the teams come out and they play physical the first 7, 8, 10 minutes, whatever it is. But after that it settles down. Guys can't keep finishing checks the whole game; running around finishing checks. I think they come out and everyone is ready to go and battling. After that, you start to play better hockey.
Key quotes from LA Kings coach John Stevens:
On what the Golden Knights have done well in this series…
If you look at their record and you see the amount of goals they've put in the net this year and you think of the of an offensive team - and they are - but they have good team speed and they play fast, and that applies to the checking side of the game, as well. I think they do a good job getting over top, they get five people back in their zone and they're a very committed hockey team both in a checking sense and in getting in front of pucks. They're a good team. They won the Pacific Division for a reason. Our games through the whole course of the year, the seven games have been all tight. But, they're a good team for a reason. They won the Pacific Division for a reason, and we just have to find a way to get a little more, give a little less and be on the right side of these close games.
On what happened in William Karlsson's goal off a faceoff in Game 3…
You can go back to a lot of it. We iced the puck off a neutral zone faceoff. That led to a faceoff in our zone. Then we iced the puck off a faceoff coming out of our zone that led to a third faceoff on that play. This time of the year, details are critical. One bad stick position, one bad penalty, one play beat off a wall can be the difference in the game. They run a faceoff play with Karlsson. They've got two guys that take faceoffs on that line - Marchessault and Karlsson. Karlsson lines up as a lefty on that play. He's always looking to jump and shoot, and they've probably scopred more goals off of Karlsson getting that puck in behind and shooting off the centerman as a pick there. In that case, Smith jumped off the mark and beat us to a loose puck. That's a play where we got beat off a mark, and they took advantage of it. It's just detail on a faceoff at a critical time that cost a goal and put the game out of reach.
On whether Drew Doughty is playing as well as he can…
I think Drew's been a factor every time he's dressed for us this year. I think he's had an outstanding year, I thought he came back after sitting out there and really tried to make a difference for us. He has the ability to defend the top players, and he has the ability to really transport the puck up the ice in a hurry, and he's the first over the boards in every situation you can define. He's an important guy on our team, and I think he's had a tremendous year. [Reporter: Has he had a tremendous series so far?] I think he's been good. I think he's been good. He's only played two of the three games, and the one game that we didn't have him was a five-period hockey game. I think Drew has been what we think Drew should be.
On whether approaches differ between the teams trying to close out or extend a playoff series…
Well, we use the term that if there's time on the clock, there's time to win, and there's lots of time on the clock. If you look at Vegas and you look at us, we're in the same situation. We both have got to win a hockey game to keep moving on. So, I think the situation's the same. Psychologically it's a little bit different, but we've been in the game a long time. We've got guys that have been in this situation. I've been up three-nothing and lost, I've been down three-nothing and won. I think I've been in every scenario you can imagine, and momentum is a dangerous thing, and all you've got to do is focus on the game in front of you, and that's if you're up in a series, as well. You can't get too far ahead of yourself thinking about what comes after this, and it's the same when you're down in a series. You've got to focus on the tast at hand and what you can do to be a better team and what you can do to influence the outcome of the hockey game. The great thing about playoffs, you can't wait for anybody else's help. You've got to help yourselves, and you've got to win a game to keep playing. We've got to win a game to keep playing.
Watch Party
Media and fans are reminded that the Golden Knights will host a road game watch party at Mandalay Bay Beach tonight (April 17) for game four against the Los Angeles Kings. Media and fans are recommended to arrive at 6:30 p.m. PT.
The cost of admission is free for first-come-first-served areas. Those in attendance at the watch party will have the chance to win Vegas Golden Knights prizes during each intermission, and the events will feature special appearances by Chance the Mascot and the Golden Aces. The Knight Line presented by Drumbots will also have a performance during the watch party.
