Golden Knights aim for eighth straight win as they visit Canucks Sunday night

The Story

The Vegas Golden Knights carry a seven-game series winning streak into Sunday night’s game against the Vancouver Canucks after splitting their first two home dates to start the season.

The defending Western Conference champions will begin a two-game road trip in the Pacific Northwest, with Vegas also scheduled to play at Seattle on Tuesday before returning home to host the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday.

Vegas forward Brett Howden said he expects the time away from home to benefit the group. “It's been a while since we've been on the road ... so I think it will be good for our group to get together,” Howden said. “It's a quick trip but excited to get on the road with the guys. Two important games for us.”

The Golden Knights opened the season with a 5-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday but were then defeated 4-3 by the Anaheim Ducks on Friday.

Anaheim jumped ahead 4-0 in that game, including three goals in the first 7:03 of the second period. Vegas later scored three times in the third period but could not tie the game after pulling goalie Carter Hart for an extra attacker, with Lukas Dostal holding on.

Vegas coach Ryan Craig said the comeback chance was close. “We're one play away in the end in the blue paint from tying it up,” Craig said. “You get down by four it's hard to come back. Proud of our guys for the effort and the urgency.”

Captain Mark Stone said the team does not stop pushing. “You're never going to see this team quit. I think that's why we've had some playoff success and some regular-season success as a team. We don't quit. We continue to push. But when you get down 4-0, you are not going to come back very often.”

Vegas has had recent success against Vancouver, sweeping all three meetings last season while outscoring the Canucks 11-5. The Golden Knights have won the last seven games in the series dating back to a 4-3 Vancouver loss on April 8, 2024.

Vancouver comes into the matchup after posting a 4-1 win over the Calgary Flames on Saturday.

In that game, Liam Ohgren scored and also assisted on Elias Pettersson’s game-winning tally during a four-goal third period. Leevi Merilainen made 23 saves for the win in his first start of the season for the Canucks.

Ohgren, who was playing his 100th NHL game, said the team’s home-ice mindset was important following a difficult home record last season. After the Canucks went 9-27-5 at home in 41 contests, Ohgren said the goal was to make Vancouver’s rink challenging to visit. “It feels great. We talked about it has to be hard to come here and play against us, and I felt like tonight was exactly like that,” Ohgren said. “I'm happy to get that first win at home, and now we've just got to keep it going.”