Defenseman McNabb adds more offense to Golden Knights’ attack
Brayden McNabb has become rather offensively minded lately.
The Golden Knights’ defenseman assisted on Cody Eakin’s first-period goal in the Knights’ 7-0 win in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals Thursday against San Jose. It is the second straight game McNabb registered a point after he scored the game-winner in the 1-0 series-clincher against Los Angeles on April 17.
“I try to pick my spots,” McNabb said Friday after practice at City National Arena. “If I see an opening, I try to take it. But my first responsibility is in my own end.”
McNabb has done well there, too. He and his fellow blueliners did a good job of clearing rebounds from in front of Marc-Andre Fleury, who stopped 33 shots in earning a third shutout in five playoff games.
“We like what he does on the defensive side,” coach Gerard Gallant said of McNabb, who had seven hits and five blocked shots in Game 1. “When he has a chance to join the rush and make plays, that’s big part of his game.”
Cup favorites
The Knights, who were once as long as 500-1 odds to win the Stanley Cup, are now the 3-1 favorite following Thursday’s victory, according to the Westgate Las Vegas Superbook.
The Nashville Predators, Tampa Bay Lightning and Pittsburgh Penguins are all 9-2 with the Boston Bruins 6-1 and the Winnipeg Jets at 7-1. Of the remaining eight teams, the Washington Capitals are 12-1 and the Sharks 20-1.
Boffo ratings
According to NBC, Thursday’s Game 1 delivered an 11.1 rating for the Las Vegas market on NBC Sports Network.
It was the highest-ever rating for the market on NBCSN. Game 1 did a 19 share, which meant 1 in every 5 televisions in the market were watching the Sharks-Golden Knights game every minute.
NBCSN was the No. 1 network in the market during the game, averaging 830,000 viewers and peaking at 1.1 million viewers.
Another first
The Knights became the first NHL team to win its first five games in the playoffs, joining a select group of pro sports teams.
The @GoldenKnights became the fourth franchise from either the NHL, MLB or NBA to win at least five consecutive games at any point in their first-ever postseason appearance. #NHLStats #StanleyCup @EliasSports https://t.co/z6SN1pSJac pic.twitter.com/Pt2mNv4lIB
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) April 27, 2018
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, baseball’s Boston Braves (from 1914 to 1918), the NBA’s 1947 Minneapolis Lakers and the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens (2000 to 2002) were the other major pro sports teams to win their first five playoff games.
In addition to the Lakers, who went 7-0 in 1949, two other NBA teams won at least five consecutive games in their first postseason appearance. The 1947 Philadelphia Warriors went 6-0 and the 1977 Portland Trail Blazers were 5-0. All three teams would go on to win NBA titles.
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Contact Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913. Follow @stevecarprj on Twitter.
