Marc-Andre Fleury has experienced many memorable moments throughout his illustrious NHL career, but none may have been as emotionally charged as Tuesday night.
In his first game since the passing of his father, Andre, Fleury made 28 saves to lead the Vegas Golden Knights to a 5-1 win over the Chicago Blackhawks.
“I thought about him a lot,” Fleury said, fighting to hold back his emotions. “I tried to stick to the same routine I’ve always done. But, yeah, it was definitely more emotional.”
Fleury, who hadn’t played since Nov. 23, received an extra-loud ovation from the crowd of 18,319 when he was introduced before the game, a moment that carried special meaning for the veteran goaltender.
“It was nice to feel that welcome back from the fans,” said Fleury, who improved to 11-6-5 in his career against Chicago. “It took me a few minutes to settle in, but I felt better as the game continued. The guys before me played really well, and I’m happy we won.”
Reilly Smith, Deryk Engelland, William Karlsson, Max Pacioretty, and Ryan Reaves scored for Vegas, now winning five of its last seven games (5-1-1) heading into a two-game road trip.
Chicago goalie Corey Crawford made 32 saves but fell to 1-4-0 against the Golden Knights. Dominik Kubalik spoiled Fleury’s shutout bid, scoring with 27 seconds left in the game.
“It was a special game for (Fleury),” Karlsson said. “Everyone knew it meant a lot to him. Unfortunately, we couldn’t get the shutout, but he had an amazing game.”
Both teams battled evenly in the first period, with Crawford and Fleury making several key saves to keep the score 0-0. However, Vegas dominated the second period, firing the first seven shots on goal.
Smith scored with a power-play goal after corralling a rebound and sneaking the puck past Crawford. Moments later, 37-year-old defenseman Engelland scored his first of the season with a wrist shot over Crawford’s glove.
Just before the second intermission, Smith forced a turnover and set up Karlsson for a short-handed goal, extending Vegas’ lead to 3-0.
Fleury continued his strong performance, making a series of highlight-reel saves, including two crucial stops on Chicago captain Jonathan Toews late in the second period.
In the third period, Pacioretty added his ninth goal of the season to make it 4-0, and Reaves capped the scoring with his third of the year.
Game Notes:
- Chicago was without defenseman Duncan Keith, who missed the game due to a groin injury.
- Vegas rookie Cody Glass missed his first game of the season after suffering an upper-body injury in Sunday’s game against the Rangers.
- Blackhawks defenseman Calvin de Haan left the game with a shoulder injury that coach Jeremy Colliton said “doesn’t look good.”
- Golden Knights winger Valentin Zykov made his first appearance since serving a 20-game suspension for testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs.
- Alex Tuch extended his hot streak with eight points in his last six games.
UP NEXT:
- Blackhawks: Continue their road trip Thursday at Arizona.
- Golden Knights: Head to St. Louis for the first of back-to-back road games on Thursday.