Analysis from VGK Radio Play-By-Play Announcer Dan D'Uva
The game had barely started. The season had just begun. But a long countdown was set to expire. At the Vegas bench, Max Pacioretty tapped his new, 20-year-old linemate on the pads. "Do what you did to get here," he said to the rookie. The tension was about to be released. The wait was nearly over.
Cody Glass, the first amateur draft choice in Golden Knights history, was poised for his NHL debut. Preseason injuries to Cody Eakin and Alex Tuch had ensured Glass's spot on the opening night roster, October 2, 2019, with Vegas hosting San Jose. An interminable 54 seconds elapsed, and then it was time - a line change on the fly - his first shift. After a few seconds and a whistle, he won his first face-off cleanly, but after the game did not remember that the Shark he had beaten in the defensive zone was Dylan Gambrell.
Glass would remember his second shift vividly. Three minutes into the game with Vegas on a power play, Glass occupied net-front ice. His eyes tracked the puck as it sailed from the stick of fellow Winnipegger Mark Stone, past the left shoulder of goalie Martin Jones and in. Glass pumped his right fist and joined the goal celebration. His self-admonition, "Play with heart," was on display.
"After that first period," Glass said, "all the nerves went away." And it showed. With Vegas ahead 2-1 early in the second, Glass, 20, lost a neutral zone draw against Joe Thornton, 40, but the Knights eventually regained possession. The Glass-Pacioretty-Stone trio crossed the San Jose line in sync and forced the puck deep. A Sharks clearing attempt was thwarted by a Glass stick check and a Stone steal. Stone protected the puck near the line and yanked it to Pacioretty at the right wall. Pacioretty drew defenders, waited, and zipped a backdoor pass to Glass waiting below the left circle. Perfect timing.
"I knew he was going to find me somehow," Glass said. "I just tried to get as much of it as I could, and it ended up in the back of the net." Bang. His first NHL goal in his first NHL game. Mobbed by his teammates, Glass couldn't fight back a smile. This was different from the 94 goals he scored in the Western Hockey League. "I blacked out after that goal. Panicking. Didn't know what to do."
The Knights finished the night with a 4-1 opening day victory, and Glass finished the night sharing the glory with family. "Very emotional for all of us," he said.
Two days later, the goosebumps subsided, and the butterflies vanquished, Glass put his first NHL goal in context. "It's definitely up there," he said. "A couple goals I scored in the World Juniors - that was another incredible moment - but I don't think there's anything that matches up to that."
