There’s more to Vegas than a guy named Reaves
Fourth-line winger wasn’t the reason Golden Knights dominated series opener
One of the hoariest of all hockey clichés concerns the old saw about your best players being your best players, and an examination of the game sheet from Sunday night reveals the extent to which the Vegas Golden Knights’ stars dominated the Vancouver Canucks.
Mark Stone, for example, was named the game’s first star after recording a goal and assist to go along with his formidable defensive game. He had plenty of company.
Max Pacioretty scored a goal while recording eight shots on net and five more that were either blocked or went wide.
Reilly Smith, maybe the most underrated player in the NHL, had a goal and an assist.
Defenceman Nate Schmidt played 24:07 and recorded an assist, six shots on goal and 10 shot attempts in total.
Goalie Robin Lehner stopped all 26 shots, and while he wasn’t exactly overworked, a shutout is still a shutout.
It was hard, in fact, to pick the single player who stood out in the Knights’ comprehensive 5-0 win. At least, it was for most observers. The panel on Sportsnet, however, had no such problem, as was quickly revealed during the post-game autopsy.
First, Kelly Hrudey discussed the Knights’ excellence in general terms. That took about 40 seconds.
Then the panel started in on Ryan Reaves. Three minutes later, an eternity in the TV world, they were still talking about him.
“He was all over the ice, getting in everyone’s kitchen,” Anthony Stewart said over a montage of Reaves’ hits.
“He was the first star of this game,” said old pal Kevin Bieksa. “He was all over the ice. He was hitting guys, punching guys.”
Elliotte Friedman opined that the turning point of the first period came when referee Brad Meier warned Antoine Roussel about his repeated attempts to fluster Reaves; attempts that were about as effective as everything else the Canucks did in Game 1.
And it didn’t end there. There was an endless loop of Roussel chirping Lehner in the pre-game warm-up before Reaves arrived on the scene. There was the close-ups of Reaves mugging on the Knights’ bench. There was the audio of Reaves clucking from the bench in the direction of Roussel, suggesting the
Canucks’ winger was a chicken. And maybe I’m being overly sensitive here, but that was offensive to bird people in general and the poultry industry specifically.
By the end of the game, Reaves had more screen time than every other player put together, plus Anderson Cooper. And here were his stats from the night: 14:20 of ice time including six minutes in the third when the game was decided, no goals, no assists and the big one, or so we’re told, 11 hits.
“I mean Reaves is a physical guy and a physical player,” said Canucks head coach Travis Green. “We know that. I don’t think either player (Roussel or Reaves) decided the outcome of the game, if that’s what you’re asking.
“The game was 5-0. I don’t think it was decided on (Roussel’s) game or Reaves’ game. I just don’t think we played a great game and they won.”
Oh yeah? Try telling that to the panel.
Reaves is an effective role player. He’s also the undisputed heavyweight champion of the NHL. But he typically plays 10 minutes a game. To suggest he was the key to the Game 1 win is like suggesting Bill Wennington was the key to the Chicago Bulls’ dynasty.
Obviously he plays a loud game and the 11 hits were a factor on Sunday night.
Just playing a hunch here, though. I think Green is more concerned about stopping the Pacioretty-Stone-William Karlsson line than game-planning for Reaves.
Unlike others, Green wasn’t interested in dissecting Reaves’ part in the Canucks’ evisceration. He was quizzed about a number of the talking points to emerge from Game 1: a tough night for Quinn Hughes, the Knights’ forecheck, the Canucks’ response to a one-sided loss, and he kept coming back to the same place.
Vegas is a very good team. The Canucks didn’t play well and Green fully expects them to rebound in Game 2. It didn’t make for the best television.
Maybe that’s why the panel didn’t spend three minutes talking about it.
“Playoffs are never about one game,” said Green. “It’s what you do in the one game and how you react and play in the next game.
“The challenge gets harder and that’s why it’s so hard to win the Stanley Cup. You’re going to go through some tough times. ... I’m confident our group we’ll be better tomorrow night.”
They’d better. I’m not sure if Canucks fans could handle a repeat of The Ryan Reaves Television Hour.