Mason Morelli recorded two points (1G, 1A) in his NHL debut as the Vegas Golden Knights (32-17-6) defeated the San Jose Sharks (15-35-5), 4-0, on Monday afternoon at SAP Center.
HOW IT WENT DOWN
The Golden Knights opened the scoring as an up-ice feed from the defensive zone found Michael Amadio all alone in the neutral zone. Amadio finished the breakaway by wristing one past Sharks goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood glove-side for the 1-0 tally at 2:26 of the first period. William Karlsson added to the scoresheet less than two minutes later as he beat a Sharks defender at the front of the net before backhanding in his own rebound. Morelli capped off the Golden Knights' three-goal first period with a power play goal in his NHL debut, tipping the puck by Blackwood's blocker from the slot with 48 seconds left in the first frame. Threading a cross-ice pass through three Sharks, Alec Martinez found Keegan Kolesar for a deflection at the point 18:44 into the second period. A scoreless thrid period saw the Golden Knights skate away with the 4-0 final and Vegas goaltender Logan Thompson take home the shutout.
TOP PEFORMERS
Mason Morelli: Morelli scored his first NHL goal and recorded and assist for the Golden Knights in his NHL debut.
Logan Thompson: Thompson stopped all 29 shots on net for his first shutout this season and fourth of his NHL career.
Alec Martinez: Martinez tallied three assists to help lead the Golden Knights to victory.
VGK STATS OF THE KNIGHT
Mason Morelli is the third player to make his NHL debut with Vegas this season, also Lukas Cormier and Brendan Brisson. He is the third to score in his NHL debut, also Cody Glass and Vadim Shipachyov, and first ever Golden Knight to record a multi-point game in his first NHL game.
Alec Martinez tallied three assists in the victory against the San Jose Sharks for his third three-point game of his NHL career.
With his assist on Morelli's goal in the first period, Alex Pietrangelo scored his 34th point (7G, 27A) against the Sharks to move into 10th most among defenseman in NHL history.
BECAUSE VGK WON...
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LOOKING AHEAD
The Vegas Golden Knights return home to face the Nashville Predators in the second of a back-to-back on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at T-Mobile Arena. Tune in on Vegas 34, stream on KnightTime+, or listen live on the Vegas Golden Knights Radio Network on 98.9/1340.
