3 takeaways from Knights’ loss: Offense sputters without injured star
The Golden Knights faced their first test without injured star Jack Eichel on Saturday night when the Calgary Flames visited T-Mobile Arena.
They failed despite some sporadic stretches of strong play in a 3-1 loss.
The best push came early in the third period, and Chandler Stephenson got the Knights (24-14-5) on the board.
“I thought we played a pretty good game, but at the end of the day, we have to find a way to score goals,” said forward Jonathan Marchessault, who had a game-high seven shots. “We didn’t have enough guys in front of their goalie, and he played a really good game tonight.”
Jacob Markstrom made 32 saves in the win for the Flames (20-18-5).
The Knights learned they were down yet another key player when coach Bruce Cassidy announced earlier in the day that Eichel would be out for an indefinite period with what the broadcast referred to as a lower-body injury.
The Knights will need someone to pick up the slack in Eichel’s absence, but it didn’t happen Saturday night.
“I think the system we play has been good for us. We just have to execute,” Marchessault said. “It’s a privilege to play in the NHL, and you have to find a way to do your job because nobody cares what you’ve done in the past. You have to take the opportunity in front of you, and right now we don’t have enough guys doing that.”
Mikael Backlund and Blake Coleman each had a goal and an assist for Calgary. Coleman opened the scoring with a power-play goal at the 11:06 mark of the first period, and Nazem Kadri fought the puck into the net through traffic 1:58 later to extend the lead.
Backlund’s goal came late in the second period, before Stephenson made sure the Knights avoided their third shutout of the month with a goal midway through the third period.
All three Calgary goals came right in front of the net.
“What I saw was guys getting outwilled in front of the net,” Cassidy said, singling out the first two goals. “You have to take care of business there.”
Here are three takeaways from the loss:
1. Is it the jerseys?
The Knights wore their Winter Classic sweaters for Saturday’s game, and the result wasn’t much better than when they donned them New Year’s Day in Seattle.
After they were shut out by the Kraken in the outdoor game, the Knights went the first 48:54 without scoring Saturday.
That’s a total of 108:54 game time in those jerseys without putting a puck in the net.
The offensive struggles can’t be completely pinned on their choice of attire, however. Stephenson’s goal marked the first five-on-five goal in any game in 184:34, a stretch of futility that dated to a third-period tally against the Islanders on Jan. 6.
2. Help wanted
Eichel’s absence is expected to be felt in all situations, but perhaps nowhere will he be missed more than on special teams.
The two-way center has become a key part of the power play and the penalty kill.
Cassidy said before the game there is an opportunity for other players to seize bigger roles.
“He’s a big part of both those units,” Cassidy said. “We need guys to step up when somebody gets hurt.”
The Knights went 0-for-2 on the power play Saturday, while the Flames grabbed an early lead by converting a first-period opportunity with the man advantage.
3. Welcome back
Byron Froese was recalled from the American Hockey League affiliate in Henderson with the injury to Eichel and was in the lineup Saturday.
Froese centered the fourth line with Jonas Rondbjerg and Keegan Kolesar on the wings. The 32-year-old has six goals and six assists in 33 games with the Silver Knights.
He had seven goals and 19 points in 125 career NHL games entering Saturday, including a goal and an assist in nine games for the Knights last season.
“He did a good job in that role for us last year,” Cassidy said.
Froese won’t be asked to make up for the loss of Eichel, the team’s leading scorer and one of the most talented players in the league.
Instead, Cassidy asked him to just fill his game to the best of his ability.
“Just play hard, play heavy, close quick in the defensive zone,” Froese said before the game of what his coaches expect of him. “You just do what you can to try to create offensive zone time and put chances toward the net. All the things that are going to help make our line successful.”
Froese said the synergy between the Silver Knights and the parent club, both in their location and systems, makes the process of jumping into the lineup much simpler.
“It’s not bad because the way Ryan Craig runs things down with the Silver Knights is pretty much identical to what they run up here,” he said. “It makes the transition really smooth.”
Isaiah Saville was also recalled from Henderson again and dressed as the backup goaltender behind Logan Thompson on Saturday with Adin Hill and Jiri Patera still unavailable.
Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on X.
