The Vegas Golden Knights (6-1-3) begin a six-game homestand as they battle the Colorado Avalanche (6-1-4) on Friday at 1 p.m. at T-Mobile Arena.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
TV: Scripps Sports (The Spot-Vegas 34 in Vegas; full network)
Streaming: KnightTime+
Radio: FOX Sports Las Vegas 98.9/1340 | Deportes Vegas 1460
NOTES
Ivan Barbashev recorded his 300th career point in Tuesday’s win against Carolina with two assists on the night.
The Golden Knights have a record of 8-7-0 against the Colorado Avalanche when playing at T-Mobile Arena.
When celebrating Nevada Day at T-Mobile Arena, Vegas owns a 4-2-1 record against opponents.
VGK MILESTONE WATCH
Reilly Smith – One point away from 300 points as a Golden Knight
Brett Howden – Six points away from 100 points as a Golden Knight
Brayden McNabb – Six games away from 600 games as a Golden Knight
CAREER MILESTONE WATCH
Pavel Dorofeyev – Five points away from 100 career points
Ivan Barbashev – Five games away from 600 career games
VGK SCORING LEADERS
Jack Eichel – 19 points (8G, 11A)
Mark Stone – 13 points (2G, 11A)
Mitch Marner – 12 points (2G, 10A)
Pavel Dorofeyev – 10 points (9G, 1A)
Ivan Barbashev – 10 points (3G, 7A)
BY THE NUMBERS
3- Jack Eichel became the second Golden Knight to record a three-point (2G, 1A) game on their birthday on Tuesday in Carolina.
9 – Pavel Dorofeyev scored his ninth goal of the season on Tuesday which ties for the most in the league. The forward has scored the most goals by a Golden Knights player through the team’s first 10 games of the season.
19 – Eichel became the fifth American player in NHL history with at least 19 points scored through a team’s first 10 games of a season.
LAST TIME OUT
The Golden Knights swept the season series against the Carolina Hurricanes with a 6-3 victory on Tuesday at Lenovo Center. Andrei Svechnikov gave Carolina an early 1-0 lead on a power-play goal four minutes into the first period. Pavel Dorofeyev responded with two goals of his own, giving Vegas a 2-1 lead heading into the second period. Jordan Martinook recorded the only goal of the middle frame, and 2:31 into the third period Logan Stankoven made the score 3-2 in favor of Carolina. The Golden Knights scored four unanswered goals in the final fourteen minutes of the game. Brett Howden evened the score at three, Jack Eichel netted back-to-back goals, and Tomas Hertl potted the empty-net goal to seal the 6-3 win for Vegas. Mitch Marner and Ivan Barbashev tallied multi-point nights with two assists each. Akira Schmid earned his fifth win of the season, turning aside 21 of the 24 shots he faced.
2024-25 SEASON SERIES
Vegas posted a record of 1-0-2 against the Colorado Avalanche in the 2024-25 season. The Golden Knights opened the 2024-25 season with an 8-4 victory against the Avalanche on Oct. 9, 2024, at T-Mobile Arena. Ivan Barbashev (2G, 2A) and Jack Eichel (4A) each recorded four-point games, and Mark Stone (2G, 1A) and Shea Theodore (3A) also tallied three-point nights. Overall, 12 Golden Knights recorded a point in the victory. Adin Hill blocked 28-of-32 shots for the win. In the second matchup of the season, Vegas fell, 2-1, in a shootout on Nov. 27, 2024, at Ball Arena. Pavel Dorofeyev scored the lone goal for the Golden Knights. Valeri Nichushkin scored Colorado’s only regulation goal and the shootout winner for the Avalanche. Despite the loss, Hill made 33 saves for a .971 save percentage in net. The Golden Knights were defeated, 3-2, in a shootout again on April 8, at Ball Arena. William Karlsson scored a shorthanded goal in the first period and Brayden McNabb tallied a goal 40 seconds into the second period before Nichushkin and Jimmy Vesey evened the score to send the game into overtime and eventually a shootout. Carlie Coyle scored the only shootout goal, giving the Avalanche the victory.
OPPOSITION UPDATE
The Colorado Avalanche enter Friday’s game with a record of 6-1-4 and 16 points, ranking them second overall in the Central Division. The Avalanche have gone 1-1-3 since Oct. 21, with their most recent game being an 8-4 victory over the New Jersey Devils. Victor Olofsson recorded a five-point (3G, 2A) game against the Devils for the first hat trick of his career. Cale Makar also made Avalanche history on Tuesday, becoming the first Colorado defenseman to record three four-assist games. Friday’s game against Vegas is the first game of a back-to-back for the Avalanche before the face off against the San Jose Sharks on Saturday. Nathan MacKinnon is tied for third most points in the NHL and leads the Avalanche with 17 points (9G, 8A), followed by Cale Makar with 15 points (3G, 12A), and Martin Necas with 13 points (7G, 6A).
PACIFIC DIVISION STANDINGS
Vegas Golden Knights – 6-1-3, 15 points
Los Angeles Kings – 5-3-4, 14 points
Seattle Kraken – 5-2-3, 13 points
Edmonton Oilers – 5-4-3, 13 points
Vancouver Canucks – 6-6-0, 12 points
Anaheim Ducks – 5-3-1, 11 points
San Jose Sharks – 3-6-2, 8 points
Calgary Flames – 2-8-2, 6 points
A VEGAS VICTORY WOULD…
- Mark the 368th win in franchise history
- Give the Golden Knights a 13-13-3 record against the Avalanche
- Give the Golden Knights a 4-0-1 record at home this season
KEYS TO THE GAME
Keep Getting Better: Despite a not-so-great start to the previous road trip, Head Coach Bruce Cassidy stated he liked how the team progressed their game from the beginning of the road trip in a 3-0 loss to the end of the road trip with a 6-3 win. Cassidy would like the team to continue building on their game with good starts against powerhouses like the Avalanche.
Special Teams: Cassidy was pleased with the penalty kill over the last three games that helped keep the team earn a point against Tampa Bay and the win against Carolina. The team will look to keep the penalty kill, and power play, sharp and strong going into Friday’s matchup.
