Golden Knights hoping for quick turnaround against Lightning
The only thing the Vegas Golden Knights have to focus on right now is the next game.
On Sunday afternoon, the Golden Knights find themselves in yet another East Coast marquee matchup, this time against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
It might be a good thing that the Golden Knights are back on the ice so quickly. The frustration from Saturday’s 3-0 loss to the Florida Panthers is still fresh in their minds, so they will be looking to bounce back quickly and keep their chances at a successful road trip alive.
Here are a few things to keep in mind as the Golden Knights hope to return to their winning ways.
Short term memory
Needless to say, the Golden Knights will enter this matchup with a serious chip on their shoulder.
They were simply never able to find their game against the Panthers, and that lead to some frustrations boiling over at the end of the game. However, there is no time for the Golden Knights to stew over what might have been, as they face a Lightning team dealing with their own disappointments. Both teams will be looking to get right in this game, which means the Golden Knights will have to find their game much quicker this time to secure a victory.
Break through
One of the reasons why the Golden Knights could do nothing was because the high-powered offense was nowhere to be found.
As a result of the shutout loss, the Golden Knights have slipped to third in goals per game, tied with the New York Islanders and Carolina Hurricanes for 3.75 tallies. However, they still have plenty of players who can push for offense in a heartbeat. The likes of Jack Eichel, Mitch Marner and Pavel Dorofeyev will be looking to light up the scoreboard against Tampa Bay, and Tomas Hertl will also be hoping for some success in his 800th career NHL game.
Do it for the kid
While Hertl is celebrating a massive milestone, it is also scheduled to be the first career start for goaltender Carl Lindbom.
The 2021 seventh-round pick was called up by the Golden Knights after Adin Hill went down with an injury on Oct. 20, and the back-to-back scenario made it possible for him to get a game on this road trip. Lindbom was impressive with the Henderson Silver Knights last season, recording a .912 save percentage and 2.65 goals against average with Vegas’ AHL affiliate. He has been hailed as the future in net for the Golden Knights, and doing his part to shut down a Lightning offense lead by Nikita Kucherov and Jake Guentzel would go a long way towards establishing that.