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Monday night’s game against the Washington Capitals was a game of first for the Vegas Golden Knights.
For starters, it was the first game of a four-game road trip but more importantly, it was the first shutout win the team has recorded all season as they blanked the Capitals, 1-0, .
Goalie Robin Lehner stopped every shot that he faced against the Capitals for the first time all season. Lehner’s night was a busy one as he managed to save all 34 shots fired from Washington.
“We don’t win tonight unless our goalie is really good and we needed that from Lenny,” head coach Pete DeBoer said. “He was our best player tonight.”
This game was a goalie’s dream as both goaltenders recorded save percentages north of .950.
Washington goalie Vitek Vanecek, he saved 28 shots on 29 attempts for a final save percentage of .966.
The lone goal of the game belonged to center Michael Amadio who recorded his fourth goal of the season about five minutes into the second period.
“It was a big character win,” Amadio said. “We dug deep and got the win there and got two points.”
After the game, arguably the player of the game Lehner seemed to be focused on a bigger picture than just tonight’s game.
“I mean, it’s nice when you get a shutout for sure,” he said. “It’s just nice to start the road trip with a win, a big road trip. It’s two big points for us.”
With the win, Vegas now has 52 points in the standings and maintains its top spot in the Pacific Division. This marks the team’s 25th win of the season, making their record 25-15-2 about halfway through the regular season.
It’s a quick turnaround for the Golden Knights as they play their next game Tuesday, Jan. 25 against the Carolina Hurricanes before finishing the road trip off in Florida with games against the Panthers and Lightning.
Puck drop for Tuesday night’s game against the Hurricanes is set for 4 p.m. PST and can be seen on AT&T Sportsnet in Las Vegas.