Three takeaways: The Golden Knights return home and outlast the NHL-leading Jets with a 4-3 win

LAS VEGAS – Road trips can be challenging for NHL teams in their first game on home ice. Add to that the only day you can recover is Thanksgiving and then you have to face the No. 1 team in the league – Black Friday can get dark very quickly.

Luckily for the Vegas Golden Knights, they lightened the mood with an energetic crowd of 18,044 at T-Mobile Arena.

Brett Howden and Ivan Barbashev each scored two goals and Adin Hill made 22 stops as the Golden Knights defeated the NHL-leading Winnipeg Jets 4-3.

Here are three takeaways from the game:

SPEEDY BOARD – While his second goal put the Golden Knights in the winner’s circle, it was Howden’s burst of speed that set the tone for the back-and-forth affair. After catching Morgan Barron’s pass in the Winnipeg zone, Howden raced the puck up the ice, flew past Logan Stanley and then beat Jets goaltender Eric Comrie to tie the game at 1-1.

“He flew out of there, but that’s what he usually does,” teammate Ivan Barbashev said. “He’s a fast player and it’s nice for him to score another goal. He scored a lot of goals and was a big part of our team.”

VISIONARY CALCULATION – William Karlsson, playing in his 700th career game, could have passed the puck when he carried Shea Theodore’s stretch pass from Winnipeg’s offensive side into the neutral zone. He had Alexander Holtz to his right, but he also knew Howden was – once again – using his speed to get into position. Rather, it was thanks to Karlsson’s patience that allowed the play to develop, as Holtz went down on the right side of the slot and picked up a few jets while Howden went down on the left side. After skating down the ice and into the right circle, Karlsson tactfully sent a no-look backhand pass through the slot for Howden, who finished the play with a nice one-timer that gave Vegas the one-goal lead and ultimately for Marge took care of the finale.

“It doesn’t always have to be a nice tic-tac-toe, then it ends up being a really nice goal,” Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said.

TOP LINE CHEMISTRY – Barbashev continues to look outstanding alongside Jack Eichel, who assisted on both of the former’s goals. The two have a combined 63 points, with Eichel ranking second in the NHL with 36 points and second in assists alone with his 28. Barbashev is 17th in the league with 27 points, while he is 13th with 12 goals.

“It’s hard to compete against us,” Cassidy said. “I think there is no rest for the D-couples, let’s put it that way. Everyone has three D pairs, and everyone is challenged. And if they’re not up to it, they’re going to be exposed.” .. It’s been like that here for a while, we’ve used different guys, Jack, he’s having a hell of an offensive season and he’s bringing it every night.