Golden Knights head home to ‘hardest place to play in League’ with 2 road wins

DALLAS -- Vegas Golden Knights forward Keegan Kolesar smiled when asked what he looked forward to when they return home for their first playoff game at T-Mobile Arena as defending Stanley Cup champions following their 3-1 victory against the Dallas Stars in Game 2 of the Western Conference First Round.

“The fan base,” Kolesar said. “It's the best. You saw it, you know, voted the hardest place to play in League.”

The Golden Knights return to Las Vegas with a 2-0 series lead against the Stars. They got timely goals and played another defensively sound game, limiting Dallas to 10 shots over the final two periods and holding them without a shot on goal in the final 6:45 of the third period.

“The veteran group we have, I think it just shows, we know how to win,” said Logan Thompson, who made 20 saves Wednesday. “We've done it all year. We did last year. That's just the experience of our group coming through and just shutting them down and keeping me outside and making my life a lot easier.”

The Golden Knights have won all four series in team history when leading 2-0. Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said there is a slight shift in mindset when it comes to leading 2-0 compared to splitting the first two games.

“We're that much closer to our main goal, first and foremost, and understanding how we're playing to get there,” Cassidy said. “Now, for me, I'm thinking ‘OK, let's just be better in Game 3 at home and let's not assume anything.’ They're going to come in ready to go. They know they're up against it.”

Last season, Vegas took a 3-0 lead in the Western Conference Final before Dallas rallied with back-to-back wins before losing Game 6.

“They made it 3-2 in a hurry, so I don't think they're going anywhere,” Cassidy said. “So, our focus is we're going to talk about ourselves and not worry about how Dallas may or may not respond. They're a good team, come ready to play. … So, it doesn't matter where we play. We're getting a strong opponent.”

The Stars, meanwhile, have lost nine of the last 11 meetings with the Golden Knights.

“They’re the Stanley Cup Champions. They’ve got everyone figured out,” Dallas coach Pete DeBoer said. “They figured out everyone last year, too. We’re not alone in that boat.”

The Stars were the best road team in the NHL during regular season (26-10-5) and will lean on that experience as they try to become the first team since the 2002 Detroit Red Wings to win a series after falling behind 2-0 as a No. 1 seed.

“You can’t feel sorry for yourself,” DeBoer said. “I like a lot of the things we’re doing. We got to find an extra goal or two a night 5-on-5 and keep one extra out a night 5-on-5. …  You can’t just dwell on the negative. You got to look; we’ve been the best road team in the League all year. We got to go in there and win some road games.”