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This morning's practice saw the return of a familiar face:

Baby screams, "Yeah!!!"

Fleury's return to full practice inspiring a lot of enthusiasm! #VegasBorn pic.twitter.com/CjrW6qtNcQ

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) December 6, 2017

So when will Marc-Andre Fleury return to game action? He will travel with the team for their upcoming road trip, which includes a back-to-back. However, this short jaunt through Nashville and Dallas is also the team's dad's trip, so Fleury's presence doesn't necessarily mean that he'll play.

While the star goaltender wasn't made available to the press after practice, he did release a statement through the team this afternoon:

It was great being back on the ice with my teammates for a full practice today. I am hopeful that I can join the team for game action soon. We have been playing well and I am looking forward to getting back and doing what I can to help the team win.

In other news, David Perron practiced in full once again. Expected to play last night, Perron didn't dress, but appears to have suffered no clear setbacks. He didn't want to elaborate about his upper body injury, but assured us that he's doing fine.

Also, Malcolm Subban was nowhere to be seen today, but Gerard Gallant said he's okay. He should draw the start against his brother in Nashville this Friday night.

***

I caught up with Jonathan Marchessault and asked the potential UFA about staying in Las Vegas long term.

At 26, Marchessault is in a prime spot for a big payday. However, does he fit a Vegas organization which might choose to prioritize the future over everything else?

From Marchessault's end, with two young children and on his seventh professional stop in seven years (Hartford, Columbus, Springfield, Syracuse, Tampa Bay, Florida, and now Vegas), I'd think term and perhaps some type of no-movement clause would be attractive to the center-winger.

Anyway, Marchessault seemed very clear-eyed about the situation.

HockeyBuzz: It's early in the season, but people are starting to talk about your impending free agency. How are you and your family enjoying Las Vegas, and do you want to stay here?

Jonathan Marchessault: I like Vegas. It's a great organization. Great city. Great fans. Everything about it is nice right now.

Obviously, I would like to have some stability for my family. Find myself a home. I would like it to be Vegas. But if it's not, it'll be somewhere else.

***

It was a sloppy night on the Strip.

Mascots faceplanted. Corey Perry got a breakaway. Two minutes were put on the board for a four-minute double minor. The Vegas goal song blasted after a John Gibson save.

Fittingly, the actual game was also a mess, but the Golden Knights would triumph in the shootout 4-3.



Winning Play

The Marchessault-William Karlsson-Reilly Smith line has been the team's best this season, but last night, they were bottled up in transition, as the Ducks did a fantastic job of staying on top of them.

Marchessault acknowledged, "They did a good job to shut us down last night."

But it's hard to keep a good line down.



By going backwards with the puck, Smith is able to lure the Ducks forwards deep, then hits Marchessault in stride.

View post on imgur.com

With Anaheim's forwards trailing the play, Marchessault and Karlsson enjoy a more manageable 2-on-2. Marchessault's speed pushes the defense back.

After a minute-long shift, Ondrej Kase iced the puck. This, of course, would be no ordinary icing. On the ensuing faceoff, Alex Tuch, who was promoted up with Erik Haula and James Neal, pinned Josh Manson in a corner.

Tuch, on pinning Manson in corner, which led to Haula tying goal: "I tried to jump on him as fast as possible. I saw who it was. He's not like a Fowler-type player. He's a big, strong player. Those kind of guys, you just have to jump on quick and try to surprise them." #VegasBorn pic.twitter.com/SqFgsRG1Sg

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) December 6, 2017

Do you think a tired Manson helped Tuch?

"They came out there for a shift, they established a forecheck, and we didn’t handle that very well," noted Randy Carlyle. "We iced the puck on the [tying] goal. We iced the puck to give the opposition the opportunity to have a faceoff in our zone."

Pluses

Gallant, on why he put Tuch up with Haula & Neal in the 3rd period: "Lucky break, I guess. Just change it up, get some size there going to the net." #VegasBorn

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) December 6, 2017

Tuch took over the last five minutes of regulation with his strength, reach, skill, and quickness. After jumping Manson to tie the game, he frees the puck here, then goes around Cam Fowler and through Manson:

View post on imgur.com

In the opening frame, the Knights were able to transition with success.

Favorite part about the Neal goal (besides its resemblance to Krushelnyski over Vernon) is beginning of play: Schmidt picks it up in neutral zone, watch Haula beeline past slow changing Ducks for breakaway. #VegasBorn then wins puck along boards, 1-0 pic.twitter.com/8RTTrFZrfO

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) December 6, 2017

#LetsGoDucks simply get caught deep here, #VegasBorn able to turn it around. Nice pass/vision by Lindberg to hit late man Engelland pic.twitter.com/qn6B2LjB5t

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) December 6, 2017

Malcolm Subban was solid once again, stopping 26 of 29 shots. In overtime, he gloved a 3-on-1 Kase bid.

SUBBAN pic.twitter.com/wh1BIKokFb

— Ryan Quigley (@RP_Quigs) December 6, 2017

Subban, on who he was focused on during #LetsGoDucks 3-on-1 in OT, when he gloved Kase shot: "I just tried to stay with the shooter. Stay calm. Treat it like a shootout, like a breakaway." #VegasBorn

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) December 6, 2017

Negatives

Anaheim did some good work to stay on top of Vegas's transition game, especially Marchessault-Karlsson-Smith. More on this tomorrow.

Playing relatively mistake-free hockey, especially during the second period, helped the Ducks avoid being on their heels too much. Turnovers, of course, feed transition.

In related news, Gallant was not happy with his team's middle frame.

I thought we stopped forechecking.

We gave the Ducks defenseman time to make plays. That was the difference in the second period. They had a lot of time to make plays and they took the puck to us.

We just weren’t as fast as we were in the first period.

On at least four occasions, the Golden Knights allowed a Duck to slip behind the defense. This happened even on the power play:

#VegasBorn PP had been mess, allowed a breakaway, called for offside. Here's Wagner breakaway, he reads #VGK breakout perfectly pic.twitter.com/KPDkzSrTVu

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) December 6, 2017

Somehow, they allowed Perry to have a breakaway from the blueline in. The slow 32-year-old, reading the pressure from behind, was forced to fire a slapper from the top of the circles, which gave Anaheim a 3-2 lead.

Think about that. No, really, think about it.

When you have a breakaway from the blueline in but score from the top of the circles #LetsGoDucks pic.twitter.com/yqtlohHt9g

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) December 6, 2017

***

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