Game Preview: Golden Knights vs Kings
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Golden Knights (32-22-8) vs L.A. Kings (24-35-6)
Fresh off of a 3-1 dominating performance over the Buffalo Sabres, the Vegas Golden Knights now welcome in yet another division opponent.
This time around, the Golden Knights will welcome in the rival L.A. Kings. This season Los Angeles has struggled to find themselves moving into a rebuilding year, trading away older skaters for draft picks and younger players. Still, while the team is rebuilding, the Kings have never shied away from a great bare-knuckles brawl with Division rival Golden Knights.
With Mark Stone sitting out yet another game due to a lower-body injury, the Golden Knights are still the hottest team on the ice late in the season. Showing their depth against Buffalo, playing solid hockey without their all-star right-winger and Goalie, Las Vegas is the team to beat in the western conference. Other than the Minnesota Wild, the Los Angeles Kings have been the most challenging team for the Golden Knights to face, year in and year out.
However, this time around the circumstances are incredibly different than in previous games. Since the Golden Knights came into existence, their rivalry with the neighboring L.A. kings has become one of the most entertaining to watch. Each game has been a factor in deciding the fate of what was usually two teams headed to the playoffs. In Sunday nights game, the L.A. Kings will not be competing for a playoff spot, unlike their Las Vegas counterparts who are seeking to lock up the #1 seed in the Pacific Division.
Even though both teams come in with different outlooks at the end of this season, the L.A. Kings will be trying to play spoiler on to the Golden Knights efforts to keep Edmonton off their tail.
With the Golden Knights up in the Pacific Division with 80 points, a loss to the kings and another Edmonton win would close the gap on the division lead significantly. A win for the Golden Knights against a division opponent would jump the Knights out to almost an eight-point lead over their next closest division opponent. With the way the Golden Knights are playing now, an eight-point separation would practically put the division away for good.
For the Kings to pull off the upset, Los Angeles will have to find a way to keep up with the Golden Knights offensively. Defensively, the Kings will have to find a way to keep the Golden Knights out of their zone with the puck and maintain the defensive line keeping the Knights offensive threats like Max Pacioretty and Reilly Smith from taking over the game.
Sunday night’s game will not change the playoff climate for the entire league, it won’t shift playoff positioning for either team, and this game won’t have the whole league holding its breath to see the result. However, this game will be a significant one for both sides. This rivalry is one of the best in the NHL, and even though the Kings aren’t playoff-bound, they are still playing for their pride. Nothing is better for a team amid a down year than beating and ruining the hopes of your most hated division rival.
The game will be at the T-Mobile Arena Sunday at 7:30 P.T.
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Vegas! If you want another great place to watch the game, head to Al’s Garage in Summerlin. There are multiple televisions to watch all the games. On the weekends Al’s has “Happy Hour” starting at 9 AM and ending at 9 PM. Al’s Garage is located at 11760 W. Charleston Boulevard, Las Vegas, Nevada 89135. Tell them, “The Franchise sent you!!”
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