The Vegas Golden Knights earned the all-important split on the road against the San Jose Sharks as they opened the first round series with one win apiece at SAP Center.
The Golden Knights went 7-3 on home ice during the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs and posted a 24-12-5 record at T-Mobile Arena in the 2018-19 regular season. Vegas' home crowd brings a unique energy that goalie Marc-Andre Fleury said the team feeds off when they're on the ice.
"It's the best arena to play in, especially during the playoffs," Fleury said. "We're looking forward to getting the game going."
While the energy from the crowd will be comparable to last year's postseason, defenseman Nate Schmidt said this year's team has a slightly different vibe than last year's squad that reached the Stanley Cup Final.
"It's a different feeling than last year," Schmidt said. "We all believe in each other, but I think it's a different mentality this year. We had a good team last year, but we weren't really sure what we were. We were out there having fun. We know we have a good team again this year, but we have a little bit more pressure that we want to live up to."
Golden Knights Ready For Home Ice Advantage
Vegas returns home for Game 3 against San Jose