Golden Knights left wing Max Pacioretty is expected to play in Game 1 of the Western Conference quarterfinals against Chicago, coach Pete DeBoer said Sunday.
Ben Gotz
Ben Gotz came to the Review-Journal in May 2016 after graduating from the University of Minnesota. He covers the Lights FC, high school sports and anything else sports-related that comes into town. He also hosts segments in the video studio on soccer and high school sports. Before coming to Las Vegas, he wrote about college hockey, college football and high school sports during stops at the Star Tribune, Pioneer Press and Minnesota Daily back home in Minnesota.
Golden Knights coach Pete DeBoer said he hadn’t decided whether Marc-Andre Fleury or Robin Lehner would start at goalie against Lehner’s former team, the Blackhawks.
The Golden Knights won two of three regular-season games against the Blackhawks, who are led by former Hart Trophy winner Patrick Kane and center Jonathan Toews.
Only three of the Knights’ skaters haven’t recorded a point in their two round-robin games.
Rookie Zach Whitecloud’s first NHL goal came in the third period of a playoff game, but he remained humble when asked about the shot that started a Golden Knights comeback.
The Golden Knights have had the middle slot for their first two round-robin games after playing before 5 p.m. local time just three times in their postseason history.
The NHL has started to dip its toes into social justice issues far more recently, which includes Golden Knights players Ryan Reaves and Robin Lehner kneeling for the American and Canadian anthems Monday.
The Golden Knights’ Ryan Reaves and Robin Lehner, along with Dallas’ Tyler Seguin and Jason Dickinson, knelt during the American and Canadian anthems before their game Monday.
The team said playing without fans was weird at first Thursday during its exhibition game against the Arizona Coyotes, but when players were on the ice, they didn’t notice it.
Robin Lehner will get the nod at goaltender Monday against the Dallas Stars after Marc-Andre Fleury started and won the Golden Knights’ exhibition game Thursday.
The Knights locked arms before their exhibition game Thursday against the Arizona Coyotes to support racial equality.
Golden Knights fans should see some familiar faces during the NHL play-in games Friday.
Among the Knights’ highlights was the play of the third line, as Nick Cousins (goal, two assists), Alex Tuch (goal, assist) and Nicolas Roy (two assists) had multipoint games.
Every day the team walks from the JW Marriott Edmonton ICE District hotel to Ford Hall, the main entrance to Rogers Place, and gets tested for COVID-19.
Max Pacioretty remains a country away from his teammates, and Knights coach Pete DeBoer said the many unknowns of bubble life in Edmonton caused the team to leave him behind.