Knights’ perfect start puts them in company with ‘The Great One’

The 1985-86 Edmonton Oilers had Wayne Gretzky in his prime and his longtime running mate, Mark Messier, down the middle. They had Jari Kurri and Glenn Anderson on the wings. Paul Coffey and Kevin Lowe were on the blue line. Grant Fuhr was in net. Glen Sather was behind the bench.

Those Oilers, in the midst of a run that saw them win four Stanley Cups in five seasons, were the last defending champions to start a season 5-0. That tied the record held by the 1920-21 Ottawa Senators.

Those two now have company. The Knights equaled that mark with their 5-3 win against the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday, and they can best it Saturday when they play at the Chicago Blackhawks.

The team has shown no signs of slipping coming off the first championship in franchise history. The Knights just look hungry for more.

“We want to have something last here,” right wing Keegan Kolesar said. “I don’t think any of us want to be one and done. That’s not our goal.”

The Knights have made it no secret what their ambitions are.

They don’t intend to fade from view after one moment of glory. They believe they are talented enough, deep enough and committed enough to go on another deep run.

The Knights want to emulate the success of defenseman Alec Martinez, who won two Cups in three years with the Los Angeles Kings, in 2012 and 2014. Or win three in six like the 2010, 2013 and 2015 Chicago Blackhawks. Or, to keep things simple, become the third team in the salary-cap era to repeat after the 2016-17 Pittsburgh Penguins and 2020-21 Tampa Bay Lightning.

They’re off to a solid start. The Knights have defeated three playoff teams from last season in Seattle, Dallas and Winnipeg, including two they knocked out in the Stars and Jets. Their plus-12 goal differential leads the NHL. They’re one of four clubs — along with Boston, Colorado and the New York Islanders — who have yet to drop a point.

“We find a way to win,” center Jack Eichel said on the Vegas 34 postgame show Thursday. “I think that’s important because you know you’re not always going to have your best effort.”

One of the key reasons the Knights continue to get the job done is depth.

Injuries would have made an easy excuse for a slow start. Defenseman Zach Whitecloud has yet to play after undergoing surgery because of an upper-body injury. Martinez missed the first four games with an upper-body injury. Defenseman Alex Pietrangelo has missed three straight after getting hit in the face with a puck.

That’s half of one of the NHL’s best blue lines missing for the majority of the Knights’ games. Yet youngsters Brayden Pachal and Kaedan Korczak, as well as veteran Ben Hutton, have done well as fill-ins. Pachal and Korczak each scored their first NHL goal within the first four games.

The Knights, who outlasted so many teams by coming at them in waves last season, have had 14 goal scorers. That’s tied with Carolina for the most in the NHL. Their 20 skaters with at least a point leads the league.

“We’re battling adversity, right?” captain Mark Stone said. “A couple guys out of the lineup. Starting to funnel some guys back in. Getting some real depth scoring.”

The Knights have been far from flawless. They’ve needed strong performances from goaltenders Adin Hill and Logan Thompson to pull off their past two wins against Dallas and Winnipeg.

But coach Bruce Cassidy was fond of calling last season’s team “imperfect” as well. It was a group that knew how to grit out two points even on nights when it felt like pucks weren’t bouncing its way.

This season’s Knights are exhibiting some of the same qualities. It might not be enough to get them another Cup. But it at least gets them mentioned in the same breath as “The Great One” himself.

“It’s still nice to correct some things while you’re winning,” Cassidy said. “It’s OK for the group not to be perfect every night and learn, as long as you get better from it.”

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