Knights on Ice — Wild Bill Bookends the Flames, while Fleury Provides Donuts to 18,083 Fans

It was as close to a must-win that the VGK could possibly have had 22 games into a 82-game season. Not only did they get it, they put a stamp on it with a 6-0 win over the Calgary Flames at T-Mobile. William (“Wild Bill”) Karlsson opened and closed the scoring with his 7^th and 8^th goals of the season, along with an assist, for a 3-point night and franchise player Marc-André Fleury provided a dozen donuts to everyone in attendance with his 58^th career shutout and his 2^nd this season. His first came on Oct. 19 against his former team the Pittsburgh Penguins. Yesterday’s win was reminiscent of the 2017-18 team that were the epitome of valiant.

I use the word valiant, because before the game, the movie Valiant premiered at T-Mobile. It was an emotional film that brought back memories of all kinds, memories that forever will be part of Las Vegas and its history. There were tears among many who arrived at 1:30 for the showing before the start of the 4 p.m. hockey game. There were smiles as well, as the story of this team and its forever bond with a city unfolded.

I’m not aware if the players had a chance to see the movie before the first public showing, but it sure seemed like they did; they injected the emotion Valiant generated into their game preparation. They looked and skated like the team that Las Vegas fell in love with just two years ago, the team that embraced and united a city that needed to be picked up and consoled back in October 2017. Yesterday felt right and maybe it was our turn, almost 26 months later, for the 18,083 fans in attendance to pick up the 23 men who needed a little help in getting back to VGK hockey.

All 4 lines rolled out one after the other. All 6 defensemen were diligent in getting the puck quickly out of the zone with precision and skill. And when there was a hiccup, so to speak, the rock otherwise known as the Flower was there to save the day, stopping all 34 shots on goal and a few in a spectacular way.

T-Mobile is a fun energetic place to watch a hockey game. Yesterday, it was even more energetic than usual, as the fans over the last few games at home or on the road have had very little to cheer about. In their last 7 games, the VGK were 1-4-3 and held leads in 6 of these games.

Players stepped up. Some even contributed without scoring or even having a shot on net. I say this with Ryan Reaves in mind.

We all know how much Ryan Reaves is loved by the fans and as a media member. I’m somewhat privy to a number of so-called hockey gurus who put their noses up in the air when a conversation starts about Revo’s hockey skills. I’m fully aware that he’s not a natural scorer and that he may not have the softest hands. But I’m also fully aware that he never takes a shift off, busting his ass all over the ice on every shift. He creates energy and he strikes fear into opposing players when they’re trying to move the puck up ice as he’s bearing down on them with his forecheck.

Yesterday, Reaves covered for a VGK defenseman with an impressive back- check that neutralized a Flames scoring chance when the outcome of the game was still in question in the first period. He also squashed the plan the Flames seemed to want to engage in with their physical play. Reaves and Carrier aren’t going to score 20 goals for you, but they’re going to prevent other teams from having time and space to create their own scoring chances. Players like these don’t appear on the scoresheet often, but their contributions are recognized by the coaching staff and a few media guys who have earned their hockey bones over the years. I personally appreciate what Revo and Carrier provide for this team, as much as I appreciate the other 21 guys who all have different skill sets that are required to play a team sport where you play in spurts of 35 to 45 seconds every fourth shift.

Speaking of players stepping up and being recognized on the scoreboard and scoresheet, Cody Eakin, who’s had a tough go of it in the first 21 games, finally notched his 1^st goal of the year. Being put between Mark Stone and Jonathan Marchessault hasn’t hurt, but before they actually put his goal up on the board, Calgary challenged it as being offside. Calgary paid dearly for the challenge; it was ruled that the play was not offsides and Calgary was assessed a delay-of-game penalty and Cody had his first goal. Cody also had 5 shots on goal in the game.

On the delay-of-game penalty, Mark Stone scored a power-play goal just 44 seconds into the power play. It was Stone’s 9th^th goal and his first in 7 games and his first point in the last 6. His fist pump after he scored may have been a good indication that he was squeezing his stick just a little over the past 6-7 games. If Stone gets going and Patches, Wild Bill, and Reilly Smith continue their pace, this past losing streak will be a distant memory that the players and the fans will look back on and say remember when people were questioning the resolve and determination of the VGK.

Pacioretty added a goal, his 8^th of the season, along with an assist for 20 points total in 22 games. As of late, Patches and Wild Bill with Reilly Smith have been the offense of the VGK. Patches and Wild Bill have passed Mark Stone, who was the team leader early in the season.

Nate Schmidt set a career record, picking up 4 assists last night. He assisted in all the first 3 goals of the game and added his 4^th assist on Karlsson’s goal that bookended his 2-goal game. It was the final goal of the game for the 6-0 impressive win for a team that needed this win as much as we needed them in Oct. 2017.

My 3 Stars of the Game: Marc-Andre Fleury (34 saves in his shutout win), William Karlsson (2G, 1A), Nate Schmidt (4A)

Next game is Tuesday against Toronto, who are in the midst of their own 5-game losing streak and their coach is on the hot seat.

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