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Avalanche deal Golden Knights 1st loss of preseason

The lineup used by the Golden Knights on Monday closely resembled the one they’ll put on the ice Oct. 4 on opening night.

Colorado arrived at T-Mobile Arena with an inexperienced group that included a 28-year-old goaltender making his first appearance in the NHL.

But the Knights started slowly and suffered their first loss in the preseason, 5-3 to the Avalanche in front of an announced crowd of 17,880.

Here’s what we learned:

1. Alex Tuch states his case for a spot on the second line.

Coach Gerard Gallant will use most, if not all, of the preseason to find a combination he likes on the second line.

Erik Haula got the first look in training camp with mostly positive reviews, and Tuch auditioned Monday for the job as right wing alongside Paul Stastny and Max Pacioretty.

“I’m just out there to make room for them and get the puck in their hands, because they’re the playmakers and I’m a guy who goes hard to the net,” Tuch said.

At 6 feet 4 inches and 222 pounds, Tuch provides the line with a different look than the speedy Haula.

Tuch picked up two assists Monday, including a cross-ice feed to Pacioretty for the Knights’ opening goal in the second period.

“We got a couple of kinks out in the first period,” Tuch said. “I thought in the second and third we had more chemistry.”

2. Cody Glass faces an uphill battle to crack the final roster.

It was always a long shot that Glass would play in the NHL this season.

But all signs point to the No. 6 overall pick in the 2017 draft returning to Portland with the Western Hockey League for more seasoning at the major-junior level.

Glass registered two assists against Arizona in the preseason opener but left in the middle of practice Sept. 17 with a lower-body injury. He returned to practice Saturday and centered the third line with Haula and Ryan Carpenter against the Avalanche.

Glass was scoreless in 15:06 of ice time but nearly scored late in the second period — he started to raise his stick in celebration — but Colorado defenseman Samuel Girard cleared the puck off the goal line.

“I feel like I did a good job, obviously being my first game back,” Glass said. “Moving forward it’s going to be a fun time, and I just have to get used to it every day.”

Glass is eligible to play nine games in the NHL before his entry-level contract begins. But to keep the 19-year-old, the Knights likely would have to place a veteran forward on waivers.

General manager George McPhee almost certainly wouldn’t risk losing someone like Oscar Lindberg or Ryan Carpenter at this stage.

3. Erik Brannstrom looked like a rookie.

The hype surrounding the 19-year-old defenseman from Sweden reached new levels of insanity following Brannstrom’s filthy shootout goal in Saturday’s 5-4 victory at San Jose.

Monday’s performance served as a reminder that Brannstrom remains a work in progress.

Brannstrom had a minus-3 rating in a team-high 20:45 of ice time and allowed multiple odd-man rushes for Colorado.

He was caught up ice, leading to a 2-on-0 in the second period that was wasted by the Avalanche. Brannstrom fell down at center ice trying to track down a puck in the third period, leading to another 2-on-0.

“We made more mistakes tonight than we did in the first four preseason games,” Gallant said.

More Golden Knights: Follow all of our Golden Knights coverage online at reviewjournal.com/GoldenKnights and @HockeyinVegas on Twitter.

Contact David Schoen at dschoen@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5203. Follow @DavidSchoenLVRJ on Twitter.

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