Some of the Golden Knights made their case in a last-ditch effort to earn an opening night roster spot in a 6-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday at Ball Arena.
Three players fighting for the opening on the fourth line all scored. Center Zach Aston-Reese scored twice, left wing Tanner Pearson scored, and center Tanner Laczynski had a goal and an assist.
Right wing Brendan Brisson also staked his claim for a roster spot with a goal and an assist for his first points of the preseason.
The Knights put together an impressive showing against a team that had many of its regulars playing, including last year’s Hart Trophy winner Nathan MacKinnon and star defenseman Cale Makar.
“I think it’s good to play against those guys as young guys to see what it’s all about,” coach Bruce Cassidy said. “Tough assignment. At the end of the day, good experience for our guys.”
The Knights, formed mostly of AHL players, more than held their own.
Goaltender Akira Schmid made 27 saves in his second preseason appearance for the Knights, who improved to 3-1 in the preseason. The lone goal he gave up was a power-play tally from forward Jere Innala just 3:57 into the game.
After that, it was all Knights.
Pearson tied it 1-1 at 8:56 on a power play as he screened Colorado goalie Alexandar Georgiev near the crease. Georgiev, Colorado’s No. 1 goaltender, gave up all six goals on 38 shots.
Brisson scored his first goal of the preseason at 15:58 of the first on a delayed penalty for the 2-1 lead, and Aston-Reese extended it to 3-1 at 8:36 of the second period.
The Knights added two more goals within 2:47 apart in the third period, with Joe Fleming scoring on a one-timer and Aston-Reese scoring his second goal. Laczynski added the final goal at 13:19.
“I thought we did a good job,” Aston-Reese said. “Everything coach talked about defensively, we executed, and that’s why we had so many offensive looks and so many goals tonight.”
Here are three takeaways from the win:
1. Fourth-line battle
Just when it seemed over, the fourth-line battle draws everyone back in one more time.
It still seems like Pearson’s job to lose. The 32-year-old scored a power-play goal in the first period.
While it was on the man advantage — a spot Pearson wouldn’t play much of — the goal happened because he parked himself in front to screen Georgiev.
That’s the kind of goal that a fourth-line player should be scoring.
Aston-Reese’s goals came within feet of the blue paint. His first was the result of a strong individual effort to strip the puck, positioning himself in front and finishing a pass from left wing Pavel Dorofeyev.
The second was getting in position and batting in a rebound from mid-air to beat Georgiev.
“Coming in, I thought already they had their roster set,” Aston-Reese said. “The only thing you can do is make their decision hard. Whatever happens, happens.”
Laczynski’s was similar, channeling his baseball skills to backhand the puck in the air. He has five points (two goals, three assists) in four games.
Pearson’s game may be best suited for what the Knights need on that fourth line. The other two are making intriguing cases.
“They’re good players. They’re not kids. They’ve been in the league,” Cassidy said. “They just keep doing what they’re asked to do. That’s all they can do is control their game.”
2. Brisson’s case
The Knights’ 2020 first-round pick was hoping for another chance to show he can contribute. He did what he does best on Tuesday — score goals.
Brisson snuck behind the defense, received a pass from center Kai Uchacz and snapped one past Georgiev to give the Knights a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
Brisson also picked up an assist on Fleming’s one-timer at 2:09 of the third while cycling behind the net and serving up a chance for the defenseman.
The numbers game has gotten to Brisson by no fault of his own. He’s had a strong camp. He added 10 pounds in the offseason and looks notably stronger.
There just might be too many wingers in front of him right now to carve up an NHL roster spot. Perhaps he’s earned himself one more chance in these final two games to see if he can build off that performance.
3. Strong for Schmid
The Knights controlled play at five-on-five, which is what Schmid needed in his last start of the preseason.
Colorado had just 15 scoring chances at even strength, compared to the Knights’ 21. The Knights also had a 7-6 edge in high-danger chances and a 2.28-1.46 edge in expected goals.
The Knights’ team defense made it easy for Schmid. He saw just four high-danger chances at even strength and stopped all 15 shots he saw at five-on-five.
“A lot of good things,” Cassidy said. “I thought we defended well at five-on-five, had a lot of penalty kills.”
Minus the power-play goal in the first, the Knights killed their next four penalties. That was the first Schmid allowed in 90 minutes of preseason.
Schmid is likely to be sent to the Silver Knights among the next wave of cuts as the No. 3 goalie in the organization. For now, he’s done enough to show confidence in that department.
Contact Danny Webster at [email protected]. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.
