The 21-year-old forward is very much part of the narrative that has Vegas in the Western Conference semifinals, where it leads San Jose 1-0 in a best-of-seven series and hosts Game 2 on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena.
Ed Graney
Sports columnist
Email: egraney@reviewjournal.com
Phone: (702) 383-4618
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Ed Graney came to the Review-Journal in May of 2006 as its lead sports columnist. He has covered all major sporting events, including Super Bowls to NBA championships to every Final Four since 1995. Graney also covered the Olympic Games in Beijing (2008) and London (2012). A graduate of San Diego State University, he is a five-time Nevada Sportswriter of the Year and past winner of Associated Press Sports Editors Top 10 for columns. He and wife Bonnie have two children, a son (Tristan) and daughter (Bridget).
Marc-Andre Fleury is 5-0 in the postseason for the Golden Knights, the goaltender having stopped 160 of 163 shots in 330 minutes.
James Neal is back winning in the playoffs — he has 84 postseason games on his NHL resume — and is again among those counted on to lead Vegas against the San Jose Sharks in the Western Conference semifinals.
There is a saying that the only permission, the only validation, the only opinion that matters in a quest for greatness is our own, and it’s one Vegas seemed to adopt as the wins piled up this season.
It’s too bad because just when you thought momentum had swung back to a healthier version of athletes caught doping and legitimately punished in the battle against performance-enhancing drugs, backbones became brittle yet again.
It’s not that the Golden Knights general manager lacks all emotion, but his is obviously a mandate built on inferred expectations.
Vegas won its best-of-seven playoff series by defeating Los Angeles 1-0 on Tuesday night before an announced gathering of 18,422 at Staples Center.
Vegas won its best-of-seven playoff series by defeating Los Angeles 1-0 on Tuesday night before an announced gathering of 18,422 at Staples Center.
When it came time for head coach Gerard Gallant to decide between continuing with what Vegas offered in the first two games of its playoff series or inserting a now healthy David Perron back into the lineup, the choice didn’t fall in Tatar’s favor.
What changed for many who made the trek from Las Vegas was how affordable these playoffs suddenly became to witness firsthand.
One of the central reasons Vegas beat the Kings in two overtimes on Friday — other than the fact that Marc-Andre Fleury in goal matched the dazzling play of Jonathan Quick — was an obvious advantage in conditioning.
Put it this way: The Knights set a team record for attendance in each of the first two games. There won’t be so many faces smiling in their direction the next two.
It’s a safe bet things weren’t as physical as the final stats suggested — 127 hits were officially recorded — but that doesn’t mean Vegas didn’t send an important message.
It’s just the beginning — Game 2 is here Friday night — and yet if the pace and style present for much of Wednesday holds to form, we’re in for a string of games defined by big hits and the highest caliber of goaltending.
If any team appeared overly perturbed about how the Knights crashed the NHL’s party this season and produced a run to be etched in the game’s history books, it’s the Kings.
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