The Vegas Golden Knights and the San Jose Sharks meet in NHL action from the SAP Center on Saturday afternoon.
The Vegas Golden Knights will look to rebound after a narrow 1-0 loss to Anaheim in their last matchup. Mark Stone leads the Knights in scoring with 15 points including a team-high 12 assists while Max Pacioretty has 11 points with 6 goals and 5 assists coming with a team-high 47 shots on goal. Shea Theodore has 10 points with 3 goals and 7 assists while Alex Tuch and Jonathan Marchessault each have 9 points with Tuch putting up 4 goals and 5 assists while Marchessault’s got 3 goals and 6 assists. Marc-Andre Fleury and Robin Lehner have split Vegas’ workload in goal, with Fleury going 5-1 with a 1.68 GAA and a shutout while Lehner has a 3-1-1 mark with a 2.96 GAA this season.
The San Jose Sharks will look to bounce back from a 6-2 drubbing at the hands of Los Angeles last time out. Logan Couture leads the Sharks with 11 points coming on 6 goals and 5 assists while Tomas Hertl and Evander Kane each have 9 points with HErtl posting 5 goals with 4 assists and Kane going opposite with 4 goals and 5 helpers. Brent Burns and Ryan Donato each have 7 points with 3 goals and 4 assists while Timo Meier’s got 6 points with 2 goals and 4 assists and Kevin Labanc has 5 points with 4 assists as well. Martin Jones has picked up all five wins in goal for San Jose this season, posting a 4.09 GAA in the process.
Vegas is 8-3 in their last 11 games overall and 4-1 in their last 5 games against a team with a losing record while the over is 4-1 in their last 5 games overall. San Jose is 6-13 in their last 19 games as a home underdog and 1-4 in their last 5 Saturday games while the over is 8-3 in their last 11 games as an underdog. The over is 6-2 in the last 8 meetings between these two teams in San Jose.
I’ve gone back and forth on this game and rather than try to pick a side, I’m going to side with the over. Both teams have a lot of talent offensively, and while Vegas’ goaltending has been better, I think the Sharks can slide a couple past whoever the Knights put in goal and I expect Vegas to get their fair share as well. I’ll back the over in what should be an entertaining affair here.