3 Takeaways from the Golden Knights' 6-5 loss to the L.A. Kings

The homestand for Vegas ended on a sour note with a 6-5 loss to the Los Angeles Kings. It wasn't enough to wholly diminish what has been an excellent homestand for the Golden Knights, which has seen them start to build a bit of a cushion at the top of the Pacific Division. But it was enough to keep things in some perspective in these last 19 games. Here are my three takeaways from a messy finale with a fun-ish "Third Act at the Fortress".

A new way to look at “Spring Forward, Fall Back”

Through this homestand, the Golden Knights have outscored opponents 9-1 in the first period. It makes sense then that the hockey gods would chuck in a clunker of an opener, and tonight was pretty much that. After getting the first two shots on David Rittich, L.A. had the next five shots and 11 of the remaining 16 combined shots in that period, closed off by Brandt Clarke which had a bit of an air hockey vibe.

It was also the second time Vegas had given up more than 10 shots in a first period in this homestand; the first being the 12 Toronto had on Wednesday night. If memory serves, that period had a few good luck sprinkles over some of those shots. But luck was definitely not there tonight.

Heavy hitters for L.A. provide bulk of the scoring damage

There was the calmly effective deflection by Anze Kopitar in the first. It was followed by Quinton Byfeld and Warren Foegle in the second. Then Trevor Moore and Adrian Kempe bookended an entertaining (if pretty messy) third. That’s four Los Angeles Kings goals coming from four of the five top point getters this season. It’s partly why winning the Pacific Division is absolutely crucial for this team.

It’s…a…Hertl Trick!

On a better night, one with a comeback that went the distance, Tomas Hertl hitting a natural hat trick would be a big story. His last hat trick was December 5, 2023 when he was still a San Jose Shark. It makes it 11 points (seven goals, four assists) for Hertl since the start of the 4 Nations break. If only the rest of the team had this kind of offensive energy at the start of the game…

In “Fun factoids to win a trivia night,” the last Golden Knight to have a natural hat trick before Hertl? Jonathan Marchessault on January 26, 2024 against the Rangers.

Next on the Marquee:

It’s a four-game Eastern Conference road trip, starting with the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday night at 4 P.M. The last game against the Pens was a relatively calm affair for the Golden Knights, thanks to a dominant third period. If their 3-1 win against the Minnesota Wild earlier today is any indication, the rematch probably won’t be that easy, especially if Tristan Jarry plays as well as he did. Though with Jarry’s play this season, that “if” is definitely Devil Dinosaur-sized. Anyway, till Tuesday night…