FSM Essential Recap: Golden Knights vs Avalanche- Game 15

The Vegas Golden Knights faced off against the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday afternoon in the NHL’s first game located in Lake Tahoe for an outdoor matchup.

The unprecedented game was carried out in a very unusual way as we only saw both teams play the first period before play was stopped after the first frame due to unsafe conditions on the ice. Everything leading up to the game was promising as we saw gorgeous backdrops from Lake Tahoe and players seemed excited about the matchup.

The nostalgic sense of playing a game outdoors in a pond hockey type of setting was obvious, and it looked like the perfect environment for an outdoor hockey game. But the sun had other plans as the ice started to melt, causing players and officials alike to question their sense of balance as we saw many lose their footing and spill to the ice without being touched by anyone else. Yet as the saying goes, “the show must go on,” which it did about eight hours after puck drop.

The poor ice quality was obvious from the get-go as Marc Andre Fleury looked shaky from the start letting in a goal not even three minutes into the game. Samuel Girard received a pass from Nathan Mackinnon and wasted no time putting it top shelf. Fleury looked like he was having trouble tracking the puck for the first ten minutes. His team looked equally uncomfortable as they weren’t able to generate any quality offensive chances for about half of the opening frame. At around the ten-minute mark, VGK’s fourth line was finally able to sustain some zone time and settle the game down, generating some momentum for the Knights. With 3:57 remaining in the period, Vegas took a pair of penalties but did a good job fending the Avs off while in a 5 on 3 situations before the period ended.

Once the first period was over it was announced during the intermission that the game was to be postponed and would not resume until 9 PM the same night.

Colorado came back in the evening with their foot on the gas and overwhelmed the Knights once the puck was dropped again. Almost halfway through the second period, the Avs were outshooting the Knights by a margin of 23-8 and were enforcing their will unchecked basically. VGK eventually found their game and tied the score up thanks to Alec Martinez’s goal with 12:23 remaining.

However, the tied score was short-lived as Nathan Mackinnon scored on the powerplay after racing past Stone and Pietrangelo giving the Avalanche the lead for the second time. The rest of the period saw multiple penalties on both teams and a shot off the post by Gabriel Landeskog, but the score remained the same heading into the third period.

Vegas was awarded a 5 on 3 opportunity early on in the third but was unable to even the score against the Avalanche.

After failing to score with a 5 on 3 advantage, Colorado eventually widened their lead to two thanks to Devon Toews‘ goal. VGK finally responded with a great spinorama goal from Alex Tuch with a little over 5 minutes left, but it proved to be too little too late. The outdoor spectacle saw Vegas get outplayed for most of the day/night as the Avs played their best game so far in the four-game series. With so much hype and controversy surrounding the game, it was probably pretty hard to stay focused and give their best effort. The Knights will have an opportunity to avenge the loss when they play in downtown Denver on Monday night.

The Vegas Golden Knights will resume play on Monday evening taking on the Colorado Avalanche for their fourth game in a row at Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado. The puck drop is set for 6 p.m. and will be on AT&T Sportsnet and FOX Sports Las Vegas 98.9/1340.

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-D.J. Wood– Franchise Sports Media

Follow D.J. on Twitter @DJwoody97

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