AP
Vegas Golden Knights celebrate a goal against the Chicago Blackhawks during the second period in Game 1 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series, Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2020, in Edmonton, Alberta. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press via AP)
Thursday, Aug. 13, 2020 | 2 a.m.
The Golden Knights continue their first-round playoff series with the Chicago Blackhawks at 2:30 p.m. this afternoon on AT&T SportsNet.
The Golden Knights were strong in Game 1, picking up a 4-1 victory on Tuesday night. They won’t need to change much to have success in the race to four wins.
Here are three keys to a Golden Knights victory, powered by Credit One Bank.
Play like Game 1
The Golden Knights’ formula in Game 1 worked to near perfection. They dictated the pace of play and forced Chicago to spend most of its time escaping the defensive zone instead of setting up in the offensive zone. The Golden Knights outshot the Blackhawks 33-20 and didn’t allow many quality shots. Every line defended well, and eventually the goals came as Vegas ran away with a 4-1 victory. There were a few things here and there to improve on, but overall Game 1 was an example of the Golden Knights “playing their game.”
Get to the middle of the ice early
One thing Vegas failed to do early in Game 1 was shoot from scoring areas. The Golden Knights had just one high-danger chance and two shots from between the circles in the first period, according to the advanced stats site Natural Stat Trick. The Blackhawks made a clear effort to take away the center of the ice, and was effective in the first period. Eventually the Golden Knights broke through, but the 2-1 lead after two periods was closer than the Golden Knights would have liked.
Keep the power play going
The Golden Knights had two chances on the power play and no goals, but they shouldn’t change a thing. The power play produced six shots on goal and three high-danger chances, generating 0.6 expected goals. That’s the kind of special-teams play that will reward Vegas as this series goes on.
Justin Emerson can be reached at 702-259-8814 or [email protected]. Follow Justin on Twitter at twitter.com/@j15emerson.
