Vegas Sweeps LA in Round 1

Who knew huh? Not me, I bet you didn’t, the rest of the NHL certainly didn’t, but they did. They being the members of the Vegas Golden Knights knew they could be a playoff team. They knew they had a great roster, they knew they could go up against anyone on any given night and have a chance to win. Hell, I bet they knew in the back of their minds they could win at least a round in the playoffs. But, I don’t think anybody knew it would come in the form of a sweep. Did you? I doubt it.

That goes to show what we know. Ultimately, now we do know how good this Vegas Golden Knights team really is. With ease the Knights handed the Kings an ass-kicking in round one of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Outscoring the Kings 7-3 in the series (including two shut outs for Marc-Andre Fleury) they not only did that but out played them consistently the whole series, and it wasn’t just last night during game four. They possessed the puck far more than LA, they forechecked way better than LA, they skated harder and fast than LA, they just outplayed the Kings and with all that it should come to no surprise that they swept them.

Look, the Kings were flat. They had to battle hard during the second half of the season after giving up their playoff spot in order to get into the postseason. It was evident that the Kings’ offense just isn’t what today’s NHL game is meant to be, a fast paced, hard-passing, shoot at will type of offense. It is sad to see that the Kings officially need to blow up their team and move away from key core players of their previous championship teams like Jeff Carter, Tanner Pearson, and maybe even perhaps Jonathan Quick. Quick was the best player on the Kings during the playoffs making 124 saves on 131 shots but he had a rather disappointing regular season posting a 33-28-3 record with a .921 save percentage. Quick is under contract for the next six years at a $7mil salary with a $5.8 mil cap hit, if the Kings want to revamp their forwards perhaps they consider moving on from the two-time All-Star and Stanley Cup Champion. I’m not taking anything away from Quick’s ability he is a remarkable goaltender but LA needs to change their game, and if things are going to blow up, I wouldn’t be surprised if Quick either asks to be traded or gets dealt in a blockbuster.

On the other hand, Vegas’ team is built perfectly for today’s NHL you could see it in the way they played in each game during this series. They clogged up the neutral zone forcing the Kings to have to dump and chase the puck, when they did dump it in the Knights’ defenseman were back to clear the puck up to the forwards. Speaking of their forwards, William Karlsson, Jonathan Marchessault, and Reilly Smith who all can fly, also lead the team in scoring during the playoffs thus far. They have chemistry with each other completing no-look passes, sniping, and involving the defenseman in the play. The Knights had seven different scorers against the Kings while 13 of the 20 skaters on the playoff roster have notched at least a point. Talk about everybody getting involved.

Lastly, we can’t talk about the Golden Knights without mentioning their stud goaltender, Marc-Andre Fleury. This guy has been UNREAL! Making 127 saves on 130 shots, posting two shutouts, rocking a .977 save percentage, and averaging 0.65 goals against average. The 33-year-old found his game this season and is back to being the three-time Cup champion goalie he was in Pittsburgh, perhaps he is even better now than he was then. It was the best selection Vegas made in the expansion draft next to William Karlsson, and if the Knights could put a ‘C’ on their goalie, I think they would. This guy is a leader and a winner and he lets his play do the talking all while enjoying the ride the Knights have gone through this season. He already has the Conn Smythe award for Playoffs MVP, regardless if the Knights don’t make it that far. Which brings me to this, no one expected Vegas to have the season they have but guess what, they proved us all wrong. So, who is to say this team can’t get to a Cup Final? Who is to say they can’t win it all? I certainly can’t and won’t say that because this team has that it factor, they can and should make it to the Stanley Cup Finals and I hope they do, what a great end to the first chapter of the Vegas Golden Knights Hockey Club book it would be. #VegasStrong

Written by Nick Gendreau