3 takeaways from Knights’ win: A game not seen for 80 years — PHOTOS
There were no penalties. Not many scrums to report. Only one goal was scored, and it wasn’t even a shot attempt.
All of that equaled to it being the best defensive performance of the season for the Golden Knights.
Goaltender Adin Hill made 28 saves for his second shutout of the season, and the Knights clamped down on the Edmonton Oilers for a 1-0 victory Tuesday at T-Mobile Arena.
Left wing Ivan Barbashev scored the lone goal for his team-leading 13th of the season, and the Knights (16-7-3) kept Edmonton’s duo of captain Connor McDavid and center Leon Draisaitl off the score sheet for the second time this season.
The Knights held the two superstars pointless in the 4-2 win Nov. 6 in Edmonton.
“It was a good defensive game by both sides,” Hill said. “(A) 1-0 game, (it) feels like a 2003 throwback.”
It felt like a throwback, but Hill would have to go back a few more years to find this kind of game.
Tuesday marked the first time in 80 years that a game ended with zero penalties and one goal or fewer scored. The last time was Feb. 20, 1944, when the Toronto Maple Leafs faced the Chicago Blackhawks.
It’s two teams you wouldn’t expect to not have at least one power play. But as the Knights have done times before against the Oilers (13-10-2), they kept the game at five-on-five, and it worked in their favor.
Coach Bruce Cassidy said that despite the Oilers’ offense finding its groove, they’re still dangerous in transition and creating chances off turnovers.
That must have been the emphasis going into Tuesday, because the Knights hardly allowed anything dangerous from Edmonton.
The Knights were ready each time McDavid or Draisaitl entered through the neutral zone. Edmonton’s two superstars were held to a combined one shot attempt through 40 minutes. That shot was a McDavid attempt that was blocked.
McDavid didn’t register his first shot on goal until three minutes into the third period, which was saved by Hill. McDavid and Draisaitl combined for six attempts in the third period, a frame in which they outshot the Knights 16-2.
The Knights had 16 shots for the entire game, with Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner stopping 15.
“For the most part, we did our jobs well, and that’s what you have to do against Edmonton,” Cassidy said. “We were able to check in layers against them, and I think that’s when we’re the most effective.”
The lone one to get through didn’t look like a shot. Barbashev and Eichel had a two-on-one off a turnover, and his pass to Eichel went through Skinner’s five-hole for the 1-0 lead at 10:47 of the first.
And Barbashev wasn’t even trying to shoot it.
“I tried to pass it to Jack twice,” he said. “Luckily it hit the skate of the defenseman and went five-hole.”
It was the Knights’ best defensive performance of the season. Even in the few times they mismanaged the puck — which cost them against Utah on Saturday in a 6-0 loss — they recovered structurally to not allow anything dangerous in the middle of the ice.
The Oilers weren’t slouches in their own end, either. The Knights, outside of the two-on-one that led to Barbashev’s goal, didn’t have much room to work with. Two of their most dangerous chances came from left wing Tomas Hertl. One shot rang off the left post in the first period, then he had a backhand attempt in close robbed by Skinner.
The Knights were quick to flush Saturday given that it was the second leg of a back-to-back fresh off a five-game road trip. They were able to reset after their first practice in two weeks, while also preparing for another stretch of three games in four days this week.
They locked down Edmonton, and Hill made key saves in the third period to preserve a win that might be more impressive than beating NHL-leading Winnipeg off one day’s rest on Friday.
”If it wasn’t the best (defensive performance) of the year, it was pretty darn close in terms of what we gave up,” Cassidy said.
Here are three takeaways from the win:
1. Stone on the horizon
The Knights could soon be getting their captain back, with Mark Stone shedding his noncontact sweater at morning skate on Tuesday.
Cassidy said Stone is clear for contact, but given the schedule, there won’t be enough practice time to see how he adjusts to taking contact. Stone hasn’t played since that Nov. 6 game in Edmonton.
He may not be ready to go for Wednesday in Anaheim, but the fact the Knights are 7-4-2 without Stone in the lineup builds promise for what’s to come when he does return.
2. 4 Nations preview
The 4 Nations Face-Off rosters will be unveiled Wednesday. The game served as a preview of what’s to come when Canada faces the United States.
Knights center Jack Eichel and McDavid, the first two picks in the 2015 draft, put on a show despite neither registering a point. Their lines matched up for most of the night, with Eichel getting the upper hand defensively.
Both were part of the first six selected for their respective countries. The Knights are expected to be heavily represented in the tournament Feb. 12-20.
Hill is also in the conversation for Canada and is likely to be one of the three goalies selected. His play as of late has forced him there, as he’s 5-1-1 in his past seven starts with a .935 save percentage and 1.70 goals against.
“I hope I can make the team,” Hill said. “It would be a dream come true.”
3. No rest for the weary
The Knights just wrapped up a back-to-back this past weekend and will now have to go through another one Wednesday against the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center.
The Knights took the first two meetings against their division foes, the latest being on the annual fathers’ trip in a 3-2 win in Anaheim.
Ilya Samsonov will likely return to the crease to avenge Saturday’s performance after allowing all six goals against Utah.
Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.