Mason Morelli scores in his debut to lead the Golden Knights past the Sharks 4-0
Mason Morelli had a goal and an assist in his NHL debut, Logan Thompson had his fourth career shutout and the Vegas Golden Knights completed a season sweep against the San Jose Sharks with a 4-0 victory on Monday.
The 28-year-old Morelli spent six years in the minors in the ECHL and AHL before finally getting called up to the NHL over the weekend.
He wasted little time getting on the scoresheet, redirecting a pass from Alex Pietrangelo late in the first period to give Vegas a 3-0 lead.
He later got a secondary assist on Keegan Kolesar's goal late in the second period.
Michael Amadio and William Karlsson scored less than two minutes apart early in the first period to help the Golden Knights snap a two-game skid. Alec Martinez had three assists.
Thompson made 30 saves for his first shutout since Oct. 28, 2022, against Anaheim.
San Jose was blanked for a league-high ninth time this season, tying a franchise record for most times being shut out in a season last done in 2021-22.
Mackenzie Blackwood made 22 saves for the Sharks.
Vegas improved to 19-1-3 against San Jose since losing a first-round playoff series in 2019 as a once fierce rivalry has become decidedly one-sided.
The Sharks came out fast in this game and hit two posts in the first 90 seconds before quickly falling into a hole they never could escape.
Zach Whitecloud hit Amadio with a stretch pass from the defensive zone for a breakaway that made it 1-0 2:28 into the game.
Karlsson scored 1:57 later on a rebound from in close and Vegas was never really threatened on the way to finishing a four-game sweep this season against San Jose.
The Sharks scratched forward Alexander Barabanov after his poor back check led to a game-winning goal for Columbus in the closing seconds of Saturday's game. Defenseman Henry Thrun was back in the lineup after being activated from injured reserve for a shoulder injury.
UP NEXT
Golden Knights: Host Nashville on Tuesday night.
Sharks: Host Nashville on Saturday night.
