VGK dethrones the LA Kings

After a gruesome series against Colorado, Vegas returned home Monday March 29, to dismantle the Los Angeles Kings in a 4-1 beat down.

The Knights trailed 1-0 after an ugly first period where the energy of the team was missing.

“We knew they would have some juice to start; we were kind of standing around watching,” head coach Pete DeBoer told ESPN. “I think in the second half of the first period, we started to get our legs and skate. In the second and third, we found our game.”

The win keeps Vegas atop the West Division at 24-8-1.

Colorado is narrowly trailing Vegas by one point (49-48).

Up next, Vegas will play the Kings once more at the T-Mobile Arena before playing the third-place Minnesota Wild also in Las Vegas where they are 0-2 against Minnesota this season.

Puck drop versus Los Angeles is at 7:00 p.m.

Right-wing Reilly Smith scored to put Vegas on the board early in the second period on a power play. The first one to congratulate him was captain Mark Stone, who also assisted on the play.

It was a welcomed sight as Smith has struggled mightily this year to put the puck in the net after a 20+ goal season in 2019-20.

Left-wing Tomas Nosek zipped a shot past Los Angeles goalie Jonathan Quick in the closing minutes of the second period to put Vegas up 2-1.

Less than a minute following Nosek’s goal, Vegas defensemen Nicolas Hague found the back of the net on a nice find from the brilliant Jonathan Marchessault.

Defensemen Alec Martinez would seal the deal in the third period to put his previous team of 10 years away for good.

Martinez has been on a point streak as of late. In his last three games played, he has two goals and one assist.

“It was nice, obviously a good feeling,” Martinez told ESPN about playing his former team. “I was more concerned with trying to close it out in the third.”