Morning Skate Report: January 19, 2019

The Vegas Golden Knights will take on the Pittsburgh Penguins to open a three-game homestand at 7 p.m. Saturday at T-Mobile Arena. Tune in to AT&T SportsNet, FOX Sports Radio 98.9/1340 and ESPN Deportes 1460 for the action.
NOTES
Saturday's game is the first of three straight home games for Vegas. After the three-game stretch, the Golden Knights head into the All-Star break and bye week. They will not play again until Feb. 1 at Carolina.
In their only meeting at T-Mobile Arena last season, Vegas skated to a 2-1 win against Pittsburgh.
LAST TIME OUT
The Golden Knights are four days removed from a 4-1 defeat at the hands of the Winnipeg Jets. Vegas' 44 shots on goal were not enough to beat Laurent Brossoit and the Jets. Brandon Pirri scored the only goal for Vegas, his eighth of the season.

SEASON SERIES
The Golden Knights look to level their season series against the Penguins in their final meeting of the season Saturday night. In their only prior tilt in 2018-19, Phil Kessel scored a hat trick to help Pittsburgh prevail on home ice, 4-2. Tomas Nosek and Reilly Smith each hit the back of the net for Vegas.
OPPOSITION UPDATE
On Friday night at Gila River Arena, Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby combined to set up Kessel in overtime as the Penguins topped the Arizona Coyotes, 3-2. The victory brought Pittsburgh's record to 2-2-0 on their Western Conference trip.
Crosby has done what he does best this season as he owns the team lead in scoring with 56 points (20G, 36A) in 44 games. Kessel (52 points) and Malkin (51 points) are not far behind their captain. Jake Guentzel had the most goals of any Penguin this season with 24 in 47 games.
A VEGAS VICTORY WOULD...
KEYS TO THE GAME
Mark Your Man: Defensive zone coverage is extra important against a team with as many weapons as Pittsburgh. Each of their four lines can produce goals, but the Golden Knights will have to pay extra attention to the top-two lines.
Start At The Top: Vegas needs its top-two lines to step up against Pittsburgh. Depth scoring has helped Vegas to an 8-2-0 record in its last 10 games, but that's been mostly without production from its top line. Everyone needs to have a hand in the offense if Vegas wants to knock off Pittsburgh.