LAS VEGAS — You really didn’t think Mitch Marner would go an entire season without scoring a goal, did you?
Only a hating Toronto Maple Leafs fan would have hoped for that. But after failing to light the lamp in his first five games as a member of the Vegas Golden Knights, Marner connected twice in Saturday’s contest against the Calgary Flames at T-Mobile Arena.
It was an evening of firsts for the Knights, who posted a 6-1 win over the Flames to remain undefeated in regulation and atop the Pacific Division at 4-0-2.
In addition to Marner’s first goal in Vegas, which gave the Knights their first lead in the start of a game so far when he scored 46 seconds on, Mark Stone scored twice — the first off a pretty feed from Jack Eichel late in the first period for his first goal of the year.
Goaltender Adin Hill had his best outing of the season, picking up his first victory of the year in stopping 26 of the 27 shots he faced.
But on an evening where a lot of players had big performances, Marner is at the top of the list. He doubled his goal output late in the second period with a nifty move during a power play, stickhandling into the clear, then going forehand-to-backhand and tucking the puck past a defenseless Dustin Wolf to give Vegas a 5-1 lead.
“It’s getting there,” Marner said about his level of comfortability playing for his new team. “Our line, me, Herts and Pat (Pavel Dorofeyev) have made some big strides the last couple of games. We’ve done a good job finding each other in open spots. I’ve gotten more comfortable with the system, getting to know guys in the locker room. It feels good.”
Stone’s second came on the power play early in the third period as Vegas was a perfect 3-for-3 with the man advantage. But Stone left the game shortly after his second goal after falling and appeared to have hurt his wrist. Coach Bruce Cassidy didn’t have any updates on his captain following the game and said he would know more Sunday. The Knights host Carolina Monday night.
Eichel was a big part of that success as he assisted on all three power play goals and had four helpers on the evening. It was his second four-assist game and the 10th time a Golden Knights player has done it.
“It’s pretty fun obviously,” Marner said of working on a power play that is so lethal. “There’s so many different players out there to make plays. For me, it’s just finding open ice for Jack to make his play and they’ve done a great job down low finding open guys.”
Marner never worried about not scoring early on. He knew eventually the goals would come.
“I knew I would get looks and opportunities,” he said. “I just wanted to make sure I did the right things to put myself in position to have those opportunities.”
Cassidy said he’s happy to see the entire line generating offense and putting good shifts together on a consistent basis.
“I think the 5-on-5 with Hertl is starting to click,” he said of Marner playing with Hertl and Dorofeyev. “I’m sure he was looking forward to getting that first goal. His second goal was unreal.”
Perhaps their Saturday night exploits will be the catalyst Marner and Stone need to find the back of the net more often. Not that they were devoid of contributing, mind you. Stone came into the game as Vegas’ second-leading scorer behind Eichel with nine assists in the first five games while Marner had six helpers in his first five. And as veterans, both understand the ebbs and flows of a long season. Neither were pressing per se. It hadn’t gotten to the point where either was gripping their stick a little too tight.
“I think it was just a matter of being patient,” Marner said.
The other big positive to come out of Saturday was Hill’s performance in net. He was solid after Jonathan Huberdeau beat him during a first-period power play, including a goal-robbing save against Joel Farabee after the Knights had taken a 2-1 lead. If that puck goes in, the Flames are tied and perhaps they have a different outlook on things. Instead, they found themselves down 3-1 late in the first and were chasing the game the rest of the way.
Indeed, there was a lot to like from the team’s performance against the struggling Flames, who are 1-5 so far. And with a tough game coming up Monday against the Hurricanes followed by a three-games-in-four-days Southeast road swing through Florida and Carolina, the Knights, who have scored six times in back-to-back games and lead the NHL in goals with 26 in six games, may have found a blueprint for success. Score early, score often and let your best players show the way.
It worked pretty well Saturday.