Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Bellemare and Vegas ‘misfits’ keep fairy tale going
PHILADELPHIA » Perhaps for the first several weeks of the season, surprised observers around the NHL figured that the early success of the Vegas Golden Knights was best characterized by the name of one of their city’s iconic meccas — The Mirage hotel and casino.
By the time Vegas had risen to near the top of the league standings at the turn of the year, no one believed this was just an expansion team fantasy any longer. Coaches and players throughout the league were essentially crowning general manager George McPhee with an Executive of the Year award, and coach Gerard Gallant — whose NHL head coaching resume had listed rather short, mostly failed stints with Columbus and Florida — was being hailed as a miracle worker.
Oh, and Reilly Smith was being hailed as a star.
Before this year, Smith’s most productive seasons had seen him compile 51 points with Boston in 2012-13 and 50 with Florida in 2015-16. Entering the Knights’ game at Wells Fargo Center Monday, Smith was out with an injury, but he’d already put up 22 goals and 60 points.
Of course, the story with an expansion team is that for the first several expected tough seasons, somebody has to get the points.
Count Smith in, and welltraveled forward James Neal (24 goals, 40 points), too. But the reality is this expansion team is different from most or all the rest.
The Golden Knights are stocked with solid NHL vets such as defenseman Deryk Engelland and forwards David Perron and Cody Eakin. But there are also younger players like Erik Haula, who Monday night scored his 26th goal to give the Knights an early lead on the Flyers, Jonathan Marchessault (22 goals and 65 points) and Lars William “Wild Bill” Karlsson, a Columbus castoff (despite his marketable name) who had scored 15 goals in 162 games with the Blue Jackets the previous two seasons ... and Monday got his 36th of the season in the Knights’ 3-2 win over the Flyers.
This team also has the one player selected from the Flyers’ unprotected list for the expansion draft, 32-year-old Pierre EdouardBellemare, who would assist on Vegas’ game-winning goal late in the third. Bellemare should have a couple of good years with this team before he’s ready to settle down and join the Vegas marketing department.
“He was a good role player here, and a great guy,” former teammate Matt Read said of Bellemare. “Can’t say a negative thing about him. One of the friendliest guys I ever played with and I’m sure the fans will have some signs out there for him.”
Other than bad signs by the Flyers on the ice — they have lost six of their last seven games, by the way — there weren’t many to be seen for Bellemare.
After the Knights’ morning skate at Wells Fargo Center, Bellemare spent time telling Philadelphia reporters about his fond feelings for the Flyers organization, and also talked about how it felt to be part of this feelgood first season with the NHL’s team from the desert.
Along the way, Bellemare said, “... You have 23 guys that arrived here, all kind of misfits. If you’re coming to Vegas it’s because somebody in the organization you were in before, even if they wanted to have you, they didn’t protect you. Somehow, you’re here for a reason.”
Granted, other expansion teams have felt the same. But before their season began, the emotions were ramped up by the Oct. 1 mass shooting in the city that left 58 people dead. Since then, the Golden Knights have been part of the public mission that is the city’s recovery, immediately earning a fond place in the hearts of many.
They quickly became a hot ticket. The puzzling fact that they’re also one of the best teams in the league has only added to the luster.
The Knights are 45-195, running away in the Pacific Division with the second-best record in the Western Conference.
“I was impressed with everything that they did,” Flyers coach Dave Hakstol said Sunday of the Golden Knights, who were beaten by the visiting Flyers on Feb. 11. “Obviously their record speaks for itself. The substance of what we saw when we were out there a couple of weeks ago backs up everything that their record tells you about them.”
Maybe so ... but it doesn’t mean it’s logical. The Golden Knights are no mirage, but they remain a mystery.
Sean Couturier is still the Flyers’ leading goalgetter, although linemate Claude Giroux is closing fast with his 25th goal of the season against Vegas Monday.
Meanwhile, Couturier, who has 29 goals, has gone 12 games without one. What he did have was a terrific play in which he picked off a Vegas outlet and shoveled the puck over to Giroux, who rifled it past goalie Marc-Andre Fleury for a game-tying goal in the second period.
Couturier has been an offensive revelation this season, not coincidentally since he was paired with Giroux and was put at center to free Giroux to work on the wing.
It’s worked wonders for both, as Giroux is having almost a career year and Couturier (now with 64 points in 70 games) is definitely having one.
But Couturier still has many of his old responsibilities, like being the Flyers’ premier penalty killer and a player frequently double-shifted. With this streak of games without a goal then, there might be a natural assumption that Couturier is a bit weary. Especially since he skipped practice Sunday for a “maintenance day.” But then again... “I don’t know how I can be any more plain. I don’t see fatigue in Coot’s game,” Hakstol maintained. “I see him playing really well. Teams might be checking that line with a little more purpose because of the success they had for a good stretch. But he’s still playing really good hockey both ways.
“I don’t see much difference in his game now than it was during the year.”
General manager Ron Hextall seems to agree.
“You’re going to go through your little ups and downs through a season, no matter who you are,” he said. “Coots, I guess you could say, offensively he is a little down right now, but we’re not concerned about it.”
Meanwhile ... both injured Flyers goalies, Michal Neuvirth and Brian Elliott, have resumed skating. New goalie Petr Mrazek has played well the last few games but has been up and down. He should have had center Ryan Carpenter’s game-winning shot late in the game Monday. All of this should make for an interesting situation in a couple of weeks for the Flyers’ goaltending, which is always an interesting subject.
To contact Rob Parent, email rparent@21stcenturymedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @ReluctantSE.