The Golden Knights closed October with a 9-5-1 record but stumbled into November after a lackluster 5-2 loss to the New Jersey Devils on Friday. Coach Ryan Craig canceled a scheduled travel day to hold a 35-minute practice Saturday, preceded by a video session reviewing the team's failure to forecheck and a rash of turnovers. "My comments (from Friday) on needing to manage the puck better and check better, I think showed up on the tape," Craig said.
The Knights committed 15 giveaways against the Devils, three of which led directly to goals. Defenseman Ville Heinola struggled in his second game with the club, prompting Craig to insert Dylan Coghlan into the lineup for Monday's game in Boston. Coghlan skated with Noah Hanifin during drills, while Jeremy Lauzon moved to a pairing with Rasmus Andersson. "He's played well for us," Craig said of Coghlan. "It was a chance to get Ville in. I expect 'Cogs' to play next game."
The penalty kill, which had allowed a power-play goal in six straight games, stopped both Devils chances Friday, dropping the unit's October success rate to 69.4 percent. Forward Marc Gatcomb said the team needs to stick with what was working earlier in the month. "Sometimes things happen like this in a long season," Gatcomb said. "We know we haven't been at our best, but we just got to stick to what was working and get back to that."
Forward Victor Olofsson traveled with the team for the road trip and participated in noncontact drills Saturday, skating with Trevor Connelly and Tomas Hertl. Olofsson has been out since Oct. 6 with an upper-body injury, and Craig did not commit to his return for Monday's game against the Bruins or Tuesday's back-to-back in Pittsburgh.
Sources: Las Vegas Review-Journal
Original reporting: Las Vegas Review-Journal →
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