Golden Knights Game 60, In the Details; Lines, Notes, & How to Watch vs Devils

This afternoon, the Vegas Golden Knights (35-18-6) play the second of a five-game homestand. They’ve won four of their last five games and look to continue their quest to win the Pacific Division. They’ll face the newly-reinforced New Jersey Devils (33-22-6) at T-Mobile Arena.

The puck drops just after 5 p.m.

The Golden Knights have given up 10 goals over the past two games and did so against two teams that generally struggle to score. Before their game on Thursday, the Chicago Blackhawks were 29th in the league with an average of 2.62 goals per game. However, the offense came alive, and the new-look third line of Ivan Barashev, Brett Howden, and Keegan Kolesar propelled them to a 7-5 win.

The Devils made their first trip to Delta Center on Saturday to take on the Utah Hockey Club. The game was tight through the first 40 minutes, but in the third period, Timo Meier and Curtis Lazar broke goal droughts to give the Devils a 3-1 win.

Ilya Samsonov has started the past two games for the Golden Knights, and in each game, he’s allowed five goals and posted a sub-.800 average save percentage. I’d imagine Adin Hill will get the nod on Sunday. Hill has a record of 2-0-0 and an average save percentage of .938 in two career games against the Devils.

The Devils just activated goaltender Jacob Markström off of injured reserve, and per Sheldon Keefe, he’s ready to go. Markström has a record of 3-9-3 and an average save percentage of .896 in 15 career games against the Golden Knights. Markström has faced the Golden Knights just once since November of 2022.

Golden Knights Lines

Victor Olofsson-Jack Eichel-Mark Stone

Brandon Saad-Tomáš Hertl-Pavel Dorofeyev

Ivan Barbashev-Brett Howden-Keegan Kolesar

Tanner Pearson-Nicolas Roy-Raphaël Lavoie

Defense

Nicolas Hague-Alex Pietrangelo

Noah Hanifin-Zach Whitecloud

Brayden McNabb-Kaedan Korczak

Goaltenders: Adin Hill/Ilya Samsonov

Projected Devils Lines

Ondřej Palát-Jack Hughes-Jesper Bratt

Timo Meier-Nico Hischier-Dawson Mercer

Paul Cotter-Erik Haula-Stefan Noesen

Tomáš Tatar-Curtis Lazar-Nathan Bastian

Defense

Luke Hughes-Dougie Hamilton

Brendan Dillon-Šimon Nemec

Brett Pesce-Jonathan Kovacevic

Goaltenders: Jacob Markström/Jake Allen

Special Teams

Golden Knights power play: 27.9%, 3rd. Golden Knights penalty kill: 76.9%, 21st.

Devils power play: 27.2%, 5th. Devils penalty kill: 83.6%, tied for 2nd.

Game Notes

This is the second and final regular season game between the Golden Knights and the Devils this year. The Golden Knights broke a four-game losing skid in their first meeting with a 3-1 hard-fought victory.

Two Golden Knight milestones: Brayden McNabb will play his 800th career game today, and Zach Whitecloud will play his 300th.

Jack Eichel (9-11-20 in 20 GP against the Devils) set the franchise record for assists in a single season last game with 51.

The other Jack, Hughes– there’s a joke I’d like to make but won’t– is on a heater. He’s currently on a franchise-leading 12-game road point streak.

The last time these two teams met, the Devils were without their captain, Nico Hischier. Hischier recorded his 400th career point on Saturday against the Utah Hockey Club and has six goals and eight points in 11 games against the Golden Knights.

The Golden Knights are 21-6-3 at the Fortress this season; the Devils are 18-12-2 on the road.

How to Watch

TV: Vegas 34

Radio: FOX Sports Las Vegas 98.9/1340