Marc-Andre Fleury, the most impactful player in the short history of the Golden Knights of Vegas, this weekend will begin the highest profile of the regular season they played.
“It’s worth starting this game,” Vegas coach Peter DeBoer said.
Fleury will lead the Golden Knights on ice for Bridgestone NHL Outdoors on Saturday against the Colorado Avalanche at the Edgewood Tahoe Resort in Stateline, Nevada (3 p.m. ET; NBC, SN1, SN, TVAS). It is the first outdoor game for the Golden Knights, and the goalkeeper who started his first regular season, the Stanley Cup Playoff and Stanley Cup Final games will be in the net.
Fleury started 164 of the 249 regular season games of the Golden Knights and has 98 of the 143 victories since they started playing in the 2017-18 season, when they reached the final.
“Its impact on this franchise from the day they had [2017 NHL] The expansion project was immeasurable, “DeBoer said of the 36-year-old, who is in his 17th NHL season and has won the Stanley Cup three times with the Pittsburgh Penguins (2009, 2016, 2017).” I think he has the perspective. A lot of guys don’t realize they’re in the twilight of their career or tend to ignore it, and maybe they don’t look back and appreciate the moments as much, but talking to him I think he has that recognition and appreciation at the moment. which this is a special game and a special day. “
Fleury (7-2-0) has an average of 1.56 goals and a .937 save percentage this season, ranking first and second in the NHL among goalkeepers with five or more starts. He started five games in a row Robin Lehner was eliminated due to an upper body injury and is 3-2-0 with a single stop, a save percentage of 1.81 GAA and 0.931. Fleury allowed three goals in 55 shots (.945 save percentage) in the back-to-back games against Colorado on Sunday and Tuesday.
“This is a cornerstone for our organization and I think we’re starting to be known around the League as a destination,” said Captain Golden Knights. Mark Stone said. “Everyone wants to play for Vegas. He was part of the reasoning and one of the main reasons for creating that culture. He’s excited to play … He played incredibly.”
Fleury played two NHL outdoor games, both for the Penguins: the 2011 NHL Winter Classic, a 3-1 loss to the Washington Capitals at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh; and the 2014 NHL Stadium Series, a 5-1 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks at Soldier Field in Chicago.
This game is not just about Fleury or his debut in the first signed game of the regular season in Vegas.
It’s more about the stage, the scenic scenery, the first time the NHL will play a game on a golf course, the beauty of Mother Nature taking the place of fans due to the coronavirus pandemic. 1,622,081 fans have participated in the last 30 NHL outdoor games.
Video: Decomposing challenges for Tahoe players
This event, which will end the next day with the Philadelphia Flyers, who face the Boston Bruins in the Honda NHL Outdoors on Sunday (14:00 ET; NBC, SN, SN1, TVAS), is made for television, with Lake Tahoe and Sierra Nevada in the background.
“The surroundings speak for themselves,” Captain Avalanche said Gabriel Landeskog said. “You can see that in the pictures, but it’s still not quite right. Once you’re out on that ice, it’s probably the purest form of hockey.”
On Saturday, purity will be bottled up in a game between two teams that have shown this week how good they can be and how close they are to the Honda West Division.
Vegas and Colorado were chosen by many to finish 1-2 in the division, in both orders. The Golden Knights have played 14 games, Avalanche 13 and are on the first and second percentage points in the West. Vegas (10-3-1) is at .750, Colorado (8-4-1) at .654.
The Golden Knights defeated Avalanche 1-0 at home on Sunday. Two nights later on the same ice, Colorado won 3-2 Nazem Kadri |his goal with 41 seconds left in the third period.
The shots on goal in both games were 55-53 in favor of Colorado. The total shooting attempts were 120-112 in favor of Vegas.
“There were two very hard-fought matches and I think you saw a little bit of everything, the speed and talent of both teams, an excellent goal in both games,” said avalanche coach Jared Bednar. “We have two more against them (in a set of four games ending Monday in Colorado) and this is obviously in an excellent setting.”
Video: The Golden Knights wear training microphones to Lake Tahoe
The Golden Knights became healthier on Tuesday with the defender’s return Shea Theodore, who missed three games with an upper body injury.
On Saturday, Landeskog and defender Samuel Girard are expected to return and defender Cale Makar it will be a decision during the game. Landeskog, a striker, and Girard missed both games against Vegas while on the NHL COVID-19 protocol list. Makar was out with an upper body injury.
“They bring their captain back on the line and he brings leadership, he brings skills, he brings grit as a general player and Makar is one of the best defenders in the league,” Stone said. “So obviously you’re going to have to put a little more on these guys … They’re going to make a leap out of this.”
Downtown Colorado Nathan MacKinnon said that the Avalanche becomes healthy should provide an even better indication of how the teams fit, how close they are and maybe who has the advantage.
“I’m a team you can play with,” MacKinnon said. “They have state-of-the-art skills. There are no weaknesses. I’m sure we’ll play them someday in the playoffs and it will be a difficult series.”