The Golden Knights get another chance to halt their slide Tuesday night, with Ottawa coming into T-Mobile Arena for a 7:00 p.m. PST faceoff.
Vegas enters on a three-game skid after Saturday’s 2-1 overtime loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Golden Knights erased a Columbus lead less than seven minutes after the Blue Jackets went ahead and managed to keep the game tight the rest of the way, but Shea Theodore’s early overtime penalty changed everything. Columbus cashed in on the power play and sent Vegas home with another loss.
Carter Hart is expected to get the nod again in goal for Vegas. He’s gone 4-3-1 with an average save percentage of .889 across eight appearances this season. On the other side, the Senators are projected to start Samuel Ersson, who comes in at 0-3-0 with an average save percentage of .835 in five games.
Vegas is also rolling out a fresh look up front. The projected lines have Ivan Barbashev with Jack Eichel and Mark Stone, while Brett Howden skates with William Karlsson and Mitch Marner. Trevor Connelly is slotted alongside Tomáš Hertl and Braeden Bowman, and the fourth line features Marc Gatcomb, Nic Dowd and Jonas Røndbjerg.
On defense, the Golden Knights are listed with Brayden McNabb and Shea Theodore, Jeremy Lauzon and Noah Hanifin, plus Ville Heinola and Rasmus Andersson. Adin Hill is the other goaltender listed with Hart.
Ottawa’s projected group has Fabian Zetterlund, Tim Stützle and Claude Giroux together on the top line, followed by Warren Foegele, Dylan Cozens and Drake Batherson. Ridly Greig, Shane Pinto and Michael Amado make up the third line, with Nick Cousins, Stephen Halliday and Andre Burakovsky on the fourth.
The Senators’ defense pairs Jake Sanderson with Artem Zub, Tyler Kleven with Jordan Spence, and Nikolas Matinpalo with Carter Yakemchuk. Jonas Johansson is listed behind Ersson.
The special teams numbers tell part of the story, too. Vegas is operating at 24.4% on the power play, good for ninth, but its penalty kill sits at 67.7%, which ranks 28th. Ottawa’s power play has struggled badly at 11.5%, tied for 29th, while its penalty kill is at 79.1%, 17th.
There’s recent history here, but not much of it favors Vegas. The Golden Knights dropped both meetings with Ottawa last season and finished 0-1-1, though they still hold a 12-2-2 all-time edge against the Senators.
Mark Stone has been especially productive against his former team, carrying a seven-game point streak into this matchup. In eight career games against Ottawa, he has four goals and 12 points. Jack Eichel, meanwhile, leads the Golden Knights in scoring this season with 19 points in 12 games and has piled up 15 goals and 35 points in 25 career games against the Senators.
For Ottawa, Tim Stützle is the top scorer this season with 16 points in 12 games. He has two goals and 10 points in 10 career games against Vegas.
In net, Hart has a 2-3-0 record with a .900 save percentage in five career games against the Senators. Ersson has faced Vegas once before and went 1-0-0 with a .960 save percentage.
Vegas is 5-2-0 at home this season, while Ottawa is 3-2-0 on the road.
In Other News...
Golden Knights Suddenly Have A Goalie Question They Didn't Expect
A routine morning skate turned into an unexpected moment of concern when Carter Hart left the ice after appearing to tweak something while making a butterfly save during a drill. The Golden Knights did not offer any immediate specifics beyond saying he is being evaluated, but it was enough to create a sudden wrinkle at a position Vegas had not been expecting to revisit this quickly.
Bruce Cassidy has already shifted to Adin Hill for the upcoming game against the Ottawa Senators, giving the Golden Knights at least one clear answer for the moment. What comes next with Hart is still unclear, and for a team that leans heavily on stability in goal, any uncertainty there is worth watching closely. [Read more 🡒]
Golden Knights Suddenly Have A Goalie Problem They Didn't Expect
The morning skate on Tuesday brought an unexpected turn for the Golden Knights, who suddenly have to sort out their crease with Carter Hart leaving early because of an apparent injury. Hart had been penciled in as the starter, but his day-to-day status forced Vegas to pivot quickly as it prepared for its next game, a reminder of how fast the most stable part of a roster can become unsettled.
Adin Hill is now expected to get the start against the Ottawa Senators, giving Vegas a familiar answer for at least one night while the staff evaluates Harts status. If the situation worsens, Carl Lindbom could be in line for NHL playing time, adding another layer to a situation the Golden Knights did not anticipate this close to game time. [Read more 🡒]
Golden Knights Already Face A Familiar Question After Hot Start
The Golden Knights have put together an 8-4-1 start that has them sitting among the NHLs top five teams, a position that usually comes with a little less anxiety than excitement this early in the season. Even with a recent three-game skid, capped by an overtime loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets, there is no real panic around the room, only a reminder that strong starts still have to be protected through the grind of the schedule.
Brayden McNabb said the focus has to stay on the group playing as one unit, which is the same message teams lean on when the wins come early and the questions start to follow. Vegas knows the bigger picture is still in front of it, but after a hot opening, the next stretch will be about proving the pace was a sign of something sustainable rather than just a fast first chapter. [Read more 🡒]