Three Takeaways From Golden Knights 3-2 Victory Against the Islanders
Golden Knights snap a seven-game road losing streak with victory against Islanders.
Dennis Schneidler - USA TODAY Sport - Three Takeaways From Golden Knights 3-2 Victory Against the IslandersThe Vegas Golden Knights ended a seven-game road losing streak with a 3-2 victory Tuesday against the New York Islanders.
“We’re not proud of our record on the road,” Vegas forward Jonathan Marchessault said. “It’s just good to get a win tonight.
Here are three more takeaways from Tuesday’s 3-2 victory against the Islanders:
Not a ‘beer league’ effort
Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy criticized his team for its defensive play in Monday’s 6-5 overtime loss to the New Jersey Devils, calling it “beer league” game.
The team returned to form against the Islanders, allowing just two goals. The Golden Knights still had issues with puck management but were overall better than they were against the Devils on Monday.
“We’re disappointed with our game. We don’t need our coach to tell us if we played bad or well,” Marchessault said. “Everybody’s a pretty smart hockey player. We know when we played good or bad. For us, it was a new day. New challenge. Tonight, we executed.
Top of the Hill
Hill, who sat out 22 games with a lower-body injury, returned to form against the Islanders making 40 saves. He was having an All-Star caliber season with a 1.93 goals-against average and a .933 save percentage prior to getting injury.
“It was fun to get back into game action tonight and battle with my teammates,” Hill said. “I always like facing a lot of shots. You feel the puck more. You get more confident as each shot goes on.”
Hill will likely play another game in this road trip, splitting time with Logan Thompson, who filled in exceptionally well in Hill’s absence.
Now with both Hill and Thompson healthy, the team can get back to its standard goalie rotation in order to keep each goalie fresh over the rest of the season.
“We both played well this year,” Hill said. “We’ll be taking the starts when we get them, and managing our workload and get win at the end of the day. That’s what it’s about.
Rempal steps in and scores
Sheldon Rempal replaced Brendan Brisson in the lineup against the Islanders and didn’t miss a beat.
He scored his first NHL goal on the power play to give the Golden Knights a 2-1 lead.
“I’m going to remember every detail about that,” Rempal said. “It’s just an awesome moment.”
The main reason Rempal stepped into the line up was because Cassidy favored Rempal’s fresh legs and physicality in the game against the Islanders.
“The younger guys when you’re a little bit fatigued, it’s. a tough league when you’re not 100 percent,” Cassidy said. “That’s the reality of learning how to play in the league every night as a young guy. That’s just part of the learning goal. I was glad to have ‘Remps’ in there. He got a big goal for us. I’m glad he competed hard. He helped us win.”
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