LAS VEGAS – The Vegas Golden Knights needed to bounce back quickly following their most recent loss to the Utah Hockey Club.
The Golden Knights (16-7-3) did so in a big way, shutting out the Edmonton Oilers at T-Mobile Arena on Tuesday.
“Just a good effort from our entire group. Top to bottom,” Vegas defenseman Shea Theodore said. “A good win to get us feeling good about our game.”
Here are some takeaways from the game:
Steep Hill To Climb
Adin Hill made 28 saves for his fourth career shutout. It marks the sixth time out of seven that Hill has given up two or fewer goals.
He made timely saves, controlled his rebounds, and froze the puck in critical moments for the Golden Knights.
Hill has a 1.71 goals-against average through the seven games.
“Any team would tell you when the goalie’s on, everyone’s a little looser,” Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said. “They can just play the game and move on if they make a mistake.”
Barbashev’s Impact
Ivan Barbashev scored the lone goal of the game. It came at 10:47 of the first period. He tried to pass the puck to Jack Eichel on the rush, but could not. The puck found Barbashev’s stick, however, and he fired toward the net, which bounced off a skate and through Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner’s five-hole.
“I tried to pass it to Jack twice,” Barbashev said. “Luckily, I hit the skate of the defenseman and got a lot of it and just went five hole.”
It was Barbashev’s team-leading 13th goal.
“He’s been very consistent. He has very few off nights for us. He’s found a way to have the necessary skill, hockey IQ, and all that to play the top line,” Cassidy said. “He’s got tenacity to his game, so he’s just a good all-around player.”
Golden Knights Lock Down
The Golden Knights fought off a spirited effort by the Oilers in the final 20 minutes. The Oilers fired off 16 shots and held the Golden Knights to without a shot on goal for the final 19:04 of the third period.
What made it more impressive is the shutdown happened when the Oilers went to their nuclear lineup of putting Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid on the same line.
“It’s not like we were trying to defend the whole game,” Barbashev said. “We tried to go offense, too, but we just couldn’t connect in the last pass. It happened multiple times during tonight’s game. But we had to switch it up a little bit at the end to go defense against this team.”
Despite the lopsided third period in the shot total, Vegas locked down and wasn’t overwhelmed against the Oilers’ pressure. The Golden Knights finished the game with 22 blocked shots.
Historic Game
The 1-0, penalty-less game was the first of its kind since 1940. It has only happened four other times in history, but two of the games on Jan. 2, 1918, and Jan. 5, 1918, weren’t played and were 1-0 forfeit victories.
So, fans in T-Mobile Arena saw something rare and special on Tuesday night.
Up Next
The Golden Knights continue a brutal stretch of games, where they will play against the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday in Anaheim, Calif.
The puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m.
WATCH: Golden Knights coach calls defensive effort one of the best
Paul Delos Santos is the Las Vegas sports insider for Dice City Sports. Follow him on X at @PaulDelos_.
