3 takeaways from Golden Knights’ loss: Home woes continue

Right wing Keegan Kolesar said he’s asked himself the question, too.

The Golden Knights have been so good on the road, with an NHL-leading 14 wins and 29 points. Why are things different at home?

The Knights got no closer to answering that question Saturday. They lost for the fifth time in six games at home with a 5-2 defeat to the New York Islanders in front of an announced crowd of 18,007 at T-Mobile Arena.

The Knights pushed hard, led in shots 38-26 and created chances. They also trailed for most of the game, which played into the strengths of a structured Islanders team that knows how to play with a lead.

The Knights fell to 8-8 at T-Mobile Arena, tied for the 22nd-best home record in the NHL.

“It seems we’re sliding right now at home,” left wing Reilly Smith said. “We just have to do better. We have to make sure this is a hard place to play, and right now it’s not.”

The teams played a tight-checking first period before Islanders captain Anders Lee scored from the high slot with 1:02 remaining.

Smith answered 1:11 into the second with a power-play goal, but a strong move to the net by right wing Hudson Fasching put the visitors back in front 3:19 later.

The slim lead was all the Islanders needed. The NHL’s 10th-ranked defense was solid, and goaltender Semyon Varlamov impressed with 35 saves before exiting with 6:22 left for undisclosed reasons.

Knights goaltender Logan Thompson allowed three goals on 24 shots to lose for the third time in four games. He was beaten by right wing Simon Holmstrom with 2:24 left in the second period to make the score 3-1. Thompson also let a shot by center Casey Cizikas get by him before the second intermission, but the officials ruled the puck did not cross the goal line before the buzzer.

A second power-play goal from Smith brought the Knights within 3-2 early in the third period. They never found the equalizer, however.

Center Brock Nelson and left wing Zach Parise scored empty-net goals for the Islanders to seal the win. The Knights have nine goals in their past six home games. Only three have come at five-on-five.

“Our crowd deserves a winning team here at home,” Kolesar said. “It’s the best place to play in the league. Other teams should not want to come in here and play against us.”

Here are three takeaways from the loss:

1. Pietrangelo’s return

Defenseman Alex Pietrangelo put his glove against the glass late in warmups Saturday.

He was back after a nine-game absence for personal reasons. And he made sure to acknowledge his family before puck drop after all they’ve been through the past three weeks.

Pietrangelo was away from the Knights because his 4-year-old daughter, Evelyn, had encephalitis, a brain condition that can have various symptoms and requires prompt treatment, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. Her health has improved to the point where Pietrangelo felt comfortable coming back. She was even by the glass for warmups with the rest of her family.

“To see what he went through, his family, you can’t even imagine,” Kolesar said. “And then on the hockey side, it’s awesome (to have him back). He’s a world-class player.”

2. Injury updates

The Knights got Pietrangelo back but remain short-handed.

Coach Bruce Cassidy said center Jack Eichel (lower body) and left wing Paul Cotter (upper body) are day to day. Defenseman Shea Theodore (lower body) is week to week, and defenseman Zach Whitecloud (undisclosed) is month to month. Center Brett Howden (lower body) remains on long-term injured reserve.

Cassidy said none of the Knights’ injuries is expected to be season-ending.

The team also had a scare with 8:20 left when captain Mark Stone went down to the ice and needed to be assisted to the bench. He returned to play two shifts at the end of the game.

“He was able to come back and play a little bit, but he wasn’t 100 percent,” Cassidy said. “Knock on wood that this is just one of those very short-term things. A stinger-type of thing, for lack of a better term.”

3. Power play stays hot

One of the Knights’ most consistent sources of offense lately has been their power play.

Smith’s two goals helped the team improve to 6-for-11 on the man advantage in its past four games. The Knights are also 10-for-23 (43.5 percent) in their past nine games.

Their hot streak has pushed their power play to 10th-best in the NHL.

“We’re scoring a lot of different ways,” Smith said. “We’re doing a good job giving a lot of teams different looks.”

Contact Ben Gotz at bgotz@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BenSGotz on Twitter.