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The emotions started with the announcement of the starting goalie. There’s always a big cheer for the Golden Knights’ future Hall of Famer, but tonight the thunderous applause went to a different stratosphere.
Marc-Andre Fleury was making his first start since his father died nearly two weeks ago. He left the team to be with his family and returned Thursday but did not play in either of the next two games. So the crowd was ready to explode when T-Mobile Arena public address announcer Bruce Cusick belted out his customary introduction of Vegas’ favorite son.
“And in goal tonight, he’s No. 29, he’s Marc-Andre Fleury!”
Fleury was spectacular in his return Tuesday, coming 27 seconds from his third shutout of the season in a 5-1 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks.
“I've gotten so much encouragement and support from my teammates, and the fans, they were very nice to me," Fleury said. “It’s different. It’s a midseason game, but it still meant a lot to me. It was good to win.”
The rust was evident early on. He slipped trying to cover a wraparound attempt early and avoided a goal when Zack Smith hit the post and didn’t seem as comfortable as he often does in the post.
As the game went on though, Fleury got stronger. He turned away 28 of Chicago’s 29 shots, including a partial breakaway from Dylan Strome at the 11:11 mark that sent the crowd into what seemed like their hundredth “Fleu-ry, Fleu-ry” chant of the night. He was unbeatable until the 19:33 mark of the third when Dominik Kubalik slipped a power-play shot inside the post to break the shutout.
“That was what we were fighting for at the end,” forward William Karlsson said. “Unfortunately, we couldn’t stop it. I think we feel pretty bad, but we won at least.”
It was clear that Tuesday wasn’t just another game. The Golden Knights had been whipped 5-0 by the Rangers on Sunday, so they wanted a good showing at home before they hit the road against two Central Division powerhouses, but this was about Fleury. He’s been the heart of the team since the expansion draft and it was tough for his Golden Knights teammates to watch him go through what he did.
"Every win’s huge but with what he’s been through the past little while, you want to battle for him,” defenseman Deryk Engelland said. “Getting back and seeing him do his thing, he came up huge a few times for us. He’s back in fine form. We’re just happy to have him back."
Maybe Engelland was a perfect example of why it was a special night. Reilly Smith scored, and he helped William Karlsson score, and Max Pacioretty and Ryan Reaves each had one, but most impressively so did Engelland, the other Golden Knight in his mid-30s who has been the yang to Fleury’s yin when it comes to public leadership. When he walked in and sniped a wrister past Corey Crawford at 11:24 of the second, he scored his first of the year and just his third in the last two seasons.
Engelland has been perhaps the biggest beneficiary of the Golden Knights’ tweak in defensive structure. They essentially moved from a man-to-man defense to a zone, and it’s allowed the Vegas defenseman to conserve energy in the defensive zone for offensive pushes. Since they’ve made the change, Engelland has averaged 10.33 shot attempts per 60 minutes, which is second-most among team defensemen in that span, up from 8.12, which was third-fewest.
When he scored, he allowed himself a mild celebration, but nothing more.
“I don’t celly ever,” he said. “One fist pump and that’s about it. More shock. It doesn’t happen very often.”
In a sport where younger players are taking over, it was Engelland, 37, and Fleury, 35, who stole the show. And really, it was about Vegas’ goalie on Tuesday. Fleury is beloved by his teammates and Golden Knights fans alike, who were all happy to see their star have a night that meant so much to him.
“When they announced Fleury’s name, it’s been loud since Day 1, but tonight it was extra special,” coach Gerard Gallant said. “It got him geared up and he played an outstanding game for us.”
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