Jon Merrill broke a 1-1 tie in the third period and the Golden Knights defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins 2-1 Thursday at T-Mobile Arena as Knights goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury faced his former team for the first time.
Fleury, who was selected by the Knights from Pittsburgh in the NHL Expansion Draft last June, stopped 20 of 21 shots he faced. The win, the Knights’ 20th of the season in just 31 games as a franchise, set an NHL record for fastest to 20 wins by a first-year team.
The Knights had taken a 1-0 lead just 1:41 into the contest as James Neal beat Pittsburgh’s Matt Murray from close range after Murray stopped Colin Miller’s shot from the point.