All eyes were on Patrick Marleau topping Gordie Howe’s NHL record for most games played on Monday night. As you’d expect in hockey, the bitter rivalry was put aside as the entire VGK lineup shook hands with Marleau, congratulating him on the accomplishment.
USA Today Sports
Vegas took the tightly contested game 3-2, but they’ll be just as hungry this evening, with another crucial two points up for grabs. It took a shootout to grab them on Monday, so look for the home team to come out and attempt to quickly assert themselves.
San Jose Sharks (18-22-5) @ Vegas Golden Knights (32-11-2)
Season Series: VGK leads series with a 6-0-0 record
Top April Performers
USA Today Sports
Vegas:
Mark Stone, RW: 11 GP - 5 goals, 7 assists, 12 points
Max Pacioretty, LW: 11 GP - 4 goals, 8 assists, 12 points
Tomas Nosek, C: 10 GP - 4 goals, 4 assists, 8 points
Nicolas Roy, C: 11 GP - 4 goals, 4 assists, 8 points
Shea Theodore, D: 11 GP - 0 goals, 8 assists, 8 points
San Jose:
Tomas Hertl, C: 10 GP - 3 goals, 3 assists, 6 points
Brent Burns, D: 10 GP - 1 goals, 5 assists, 6 points
Kevin Labanc, RW: 10 GP - 2 goals, 3 assists, 5 points
Rudolfs Balcers, LW: 10 GP - 2 goals, 3 assists, 5 points
Evander Kane, LW: 10 GP - 2 goals, 3 assists, 5 points
Goalies
Vegas
Marc-Andre Fleury*: 20-10-0, 2.09 GAA, .925 SV%
Robin Lehner: 11-1-2, 2.11 GAA, .919 SV%
San Jose
Martin Jones: 15-12-3, 3.19 GAA, .898 SV%
Josef Korenar*: 3 GP, 0-1-0, 2.45 GAA, .895 SV%
*Denotes expected starter
Lineup Changes
Aside from a goalie change, the Sharks will utilize the same lineup from Monday this evening. Despite the rare good game against Vegas, Jones will make way for Korenar, his backup since the team dealt Devan Dubnyk.
The Vegas Golden Knights will keep their goalie rotation on schedule, starting Fleury. Lehner had a great game, making several key stops, including all three he faced during the shootout. Both men are putting together stellar seasons, Lehner’s broken up by a length concussion absence.
Dylan Sikura was called up to the Golden Knights’ taxi squad, swapping places with Tomas Jurco. There’s a chance he gets into the lineup with Keegan Kolesar and Reilly Smith ruled out by Head Coach Pete DeBoer. Today’s morning skate was optional, so no insight there. Sikura did skate in the optional session.
Frustrations
In Monday night’s game, Lehner was not hesitant to mix it up in a scrum involving Kane. Kane threw a hit at Alex Pietrangelo as the first period ended and Petro responded. Next Burns joined the scrum, then Lehner. The goalie had a notable Twitter feud with the controversial Sharks forward which partially explains the reaction.
USA Today Sports
Kane being public enemy number one in Vegas doesn’t help his case either. More importantly, in Wednesday morning’s media availability, Lehner spoke out about the “prison” NHL players are living in despite being vaccinated. The Coronavirus shutdowns and quarantining have been rough on the world. Just imagine the difficulty for a man with his history of battling mental Illness.
Tonight’s game is scheduled for a 6:30 PDT puck drop at the Fortress in Las Vegas. The Golden Knights find themselves in first place with a rare opportunity to stretch their lead and pressure the competition, with the Colorado Avalanche out on COVID leave.
Follow along on Twitter tonight during the game for instant reactions and subpar hockey analysis.
Here's some links to Like, Follow, RT, and Subscribe to!
* Twitter
* Facebook
* Insta
* YouTube
Vegas Golden Knights Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»