The Vegas Golden Knights (31-15-6) battle the New York Rangers (24-23-4) for the first game of a four-game road trip on Sunday at 3 p.m. PT at Madison Square Garden.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
TV: Vegas 34
Streaming: KnightTime+
Radio: FOX Sports Las Vegas 98.9/1340
NOTES
The Vegas Golden Knights signed Brandon Saad to a one-year contract for the remainder of the 2024-25 season on Jan. 31. The veteran forward has played in 906 games and recorded 515 points (260G, 255A) throughout his career.
Tomas Hertl became the second Golden Knight to reach 20 goals this season, behind Pavel Dorofeyev (22G). His 20th goal also extended his point streak to 11 games in which he’s recorded 15 points (9G, 6A).
The Golden Knights blueline totaled for 33 points in the month of January, which was the fourth most in the league behind the Columbus Blue Jackets (37), the New York Rangers (36), and the Vancouver Canucks (34). Shea Theodore accounted for 14 points (2G, 12A) throughout January.
VGK MILESTONE WATCH
Brayden McNabb – Four assists away from 100 assists as a Golden Knight
Shea Theodore – Five games away from 500 games as a Golden Knight
Ivan Barbashev – Six points away from 100 points as a Golden Knight
Adin Hill – Six games away from 100 games as a Golden Knight
CAREER MILESTONE WATCH
Tanner Pearson – Four games away from 700 career games
Nicolas Roy – Seven assists away from 100 career assists
Zach Whitecloud – Eight games away from 300 career games
Brayden McNabb – Eight games away from 800 career games
VGK SCORING LEADERS
Jack Eichel – 64 points (16G, 48A)
Mark Stone – 46 points (13G, 33A)
Shea Theodore – 44 points (6G, 38A)
Tomas Hertl – 41 points (20G, 21A)
Pavel Dorofeyev – 34 points (22G, 12A)
Ivan Barbashev – 33 points (15G, 18A)
LAST TIME OUT
The Golden Knights fell in overtime, 2-1, to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday night at T-Mobile Arena. Tomas Hertl scored the lone goal for Vegas five minutes into the first period; however, Adam Fantilli evened the score for Columbus before the period’s end. The second and third periods remained scoreless to send the game to overtime when Cole Sillinger scored 52 seconds into overtime to give the Blue Jackets the win.
SEASON SERIES
Vegas and New York previously met this season at T-Mobile on Jan. 11 with the Rangers grabbing the 2-1 win. Mark Stone scored the Golden Knights' only goal in the loss 6:16 into the second period. Vincent Trocheck responded three minutes later to make the score 1-1 heading into the third period. Adam Edstrom notched the game-winning-goal for the Rangers six minutes into the third period. The last meeting between these two teams was the start of Tomas Hertl’s current 11-game point streak, with the assist on Stone’s goal.
OPPOSITION UPDATE
The New York Rangers face the Golden Knights in the second game of a back-to-back, falling to the Boston Bruins, 6-3, in the first game at TD Garden on Saturday. The Rangers hold a record of 8-4-3 since Jan. 1, with two shutout victories. New York sits sixth in the Metropolitan Division with a record of 24-23-4 and 52 points. The club recently acquired J.T. Miler, Erik Brannstrom, and Jackson Dorrington in a trade with the Vancouver Canucks. Artemi Panarin leads the Rangers with 52 points (21G, 31A), followed by Adam Fox with 40 points (3G, 37A), and Miller with 35 points (9G, 26A).
PACIFIC DIVISION STANDINGS
Vegas Golden Knights – 31-15-6, 68 points
Edmonton Oilers – 32-16-4, 68 points
Los Angeles Kings – 27-17-6, 60 points
Calgary Flames – 25-19-7, 57 points
Vancouver Canucks – 23-18-10, 56 points
Seattle Kraken – 23-27-3, 49 points
Anaheim Ducks – 21-24-6, 48 points
San Jose Sharks – 15-33-6, 36 points
A VEGAS VICTORY WOULD...
- Mark the 344th win in franchise history
- Give the Golden Knights an 8-5-0 all-time record against the Rangers
- Give the Golden Knights a 7-4-2 all-time record at Madison Square Garden
KEYS TO THE GAMES
Puck Management: After the loss to Columbus on Thursday, Head Coach Bruce Cassidy stated that the team needs to have better puck management. He said the team needs to have cleaner offensive zone entries, have less turnovers, and move the puck through the forecheck more.
Veteran Squad: With Vegas signing veteran forward, Brandon Saad, the team continues to utilize experience throughout the lineup. Cassidy stated that the locker room is full of smart players who have been around the league for a while that understand to keep pushing and the goals will come.
