Morning Skate Report: Nov. 23, 2022
Golden Knights return home to host Ottawa Senators
By
Caylee Allard
VegasGoldenKnights.com
BROADCAST INFORMATION
TV: TNT
Radio: FOX Sports Las Vegas 98.9/1340 | Deportes Vegas 1460
HOCKEY FIGHTS CANCER
The Golden Knights will be wearing lavender warm-up jerseys for Hockey Fights Cancer. Following warm-ups, fans will have the opportunity to place bids on the player-worn specialty sweaters. Lavender taped sticks will also be for sale through the online auction. A portion of the proceeds from Wednesday night will be donated to the Donskov Scholarship (in memory of assistant coach Misha Donskov's father), Kay's Power Play (in memory of Shea Theodore 's grandmother), and the Cure 4 The Kids Foundation, a local organization dedicated to the cures and prevention of childhood diseases. Additionally, the 51/49 Raffle on Wednesday will be used to benefit these organizations. Promotional support of the 51/49 Raffle is sponsored by Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers. During the game, fans are invited to Sections 9 and 10 to pick up and fill out "I Fight For" signs to honor and support their loved ones who are battling cancer. Fans will also have the opportunity to take a photo in front of the team's Hockey Fights Cancer Knight backdrop with their signs.
NOTES
Wednesday's game is the second meeting of the 2022-2023 season between the Golden Knights and Senators. Vegas won the last contest by a score of 5-4.
LAST TIME OUT
The Golden Knights won 5-4 in a thriller back-and-forth game against the Vancouver Canucks on Monday at Rogers Arena. After a scoreless first period, Andrei Kuzmenko opened the scoring for the Canucks in the second. Mark Stone and Wiliam Carrier then put Vegas ahead, 2-1. In the final frame, Vancouver scored three unanswered goals to take a 4-2 lead. Vegas responded right back with three unanswered goals themselves thanks to William Carrier, Reilly Smith and finally Alex Pietrangelo with the game-winner.
VGK SCORING LEADERS
Jack Eichel - 24 points (10G, 14A)
Alex Pietrangelo - 20 points (3G, 17A)
Chandler Stephenson - 19 points (6G, 13A)
Mark Stone - 17 points (8G, 9A)
Reilly Smith - 15 points (10G, 5A)
Jonathan Marchessault - 15 points (7G, 8A)
Shea Theodore - 14 points (3G, 11A)
William Karlsson - 13 points (4G, 9A)
MILESTONE WATCH
Alex Pietrangelo - one game away from 900 NHL games played
Brayden McNabb - two assists away from 100 assists
PACIFIC DIVISION PICTURE
Vegas Golden Knights - 15-4-1, 31 ponts
Los Angeles Kings - 11-9-2, 24 points
Seattle Kraken - 10-5-3, 23 points
Calgary Flames - 9-7-2, 20 points
Edmonton Oilers - 10-9-0, 20 points
San Jose Sharks - 7-11-3, 17 points
Vancouver Canucks - 6-10-3, 15 points
Anaheim Ducks - 5-13-1, 11 points
OPPOSITION UPDATE
Entering the game against Vegas, the Senators are in last place in the Atlantic Division with a 6-11-1 record. They have lost six of their last eight contests, most recently suffering a 5-1 defeat to the Sharks on Monday night. Ottawa's top goal scorer is Brady Tkachuk, who has 22 points (7G, 15A). Claude Giroux has 18 points (8G, 10A) alongside Tim Stützle (7G, 11A).
A VEGAS VICTORY WOULD…
- Mark the 232nd win in franchise history
- Give Vegas its 9th win all time against Ottawa
KEYS TO THE GAME
Penalty kill:The Golden Knights and Senators both have similar penalty kill percentages, with Vegas being ranked 20th in the league and the Senators ranked 19th. Vegas will simply need to be better than their opponent if they go down a man.
Goaltending matchup:Even though Ottawa's goaltenders have higher GAA's than Vegas' goalies, their save percentages come close to Logan Thompson (.920%) and Adin Hill (.909%). Ottawa's Anton Forsberg holds a .904% save percentage and Cam Talbot has a .909% save percentage. The goaltender between the pipes must be sharp to get past Ottawa's evenly matched netminders.
