NHL Game Preview - Detroit at Vegas

Fri Oct 13, 2017 10:30 PM EDT

LAS VEGAS -- The Vegas Golden Knights are the first expansion team in NHL history to win its first three games.

They will look to extend the streak during a lengthy homestand.

The Golden Knights, who cruised to a 5-2 victory over the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday in their first home game at T-Mobile Arena, play their next six games in Las Vegas starting with a Friday night contest with the Detroit Red Wings.

The Golden Knights (3-0-0) will also play the Boston Bruins, Buffalo Sabres, St. Louis Blues, Chicago Blackhawks and Colorado Avalanche before hitting the road again Oct. 30, when they face the New York Rangers.

"You don't see that too often, right?" goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, off to a 3-0-0 start with a 1.32 goals-against average, said of the seven-game homestand. "It will be good to just be home and spend some time with the family and the guys and have some good practices."

The two-day break after an emotional home opener couldn't have come at a better time for the Golden Knights. The pregame ceremony Tuesday included a moving tribute to victims and first responders to the Oct. 1 mass shooting that killed 58 people a couple blocks from T-Mobile Arena less than two hours after the team's final preseason game.

Vegas players had spent much of their free time visiting with victims in the hospital and also first responders.

"Yeah, emotions have been running high every game in the last week and even bigger when we were playing at home Tuesday," said Golden Knights left winger James Neal, who has five goals, including all three game-winners. "It's kind of good to recharge and reset the minds and the body and kind of settle in there a little bit."

Especially when the team remains unbeaten.

"We're really happy with where we are right now," Golden Knights coach Gerard Gallant said. "Obviously with a 3-0 start, it's a great start for us and our franchise. But we're just taking it one day at a time."

Detroit (3-1-0) will conclude a four-game road trip that began with a 2-1 shootout victory at Ottawa. The Red Wings took a 4-2 loss at Dallas on Tuesday before recording a 4-2, come-from-behind win at Arizona on Thursday night.

Goalie Jimmy Howard improved to 3-0-0 with a 1.62 GAA after stopping 33 shots against the Coyotes.

"It will be cool to see the new atmosphere (in Vegas)," said Red Wings center Dylan Larkin, who set up Luke Glendening for the game-winning short-handed goal at Arizona with 3:24 remaining. "I've heard great things. It'll be a lot of fun. Back to back, we've got to get a lot of rest tonight and then play hard tomorrow."

Red Wings defenseman Niklas Kronwall returned to the lineup Thursday after missing three games with a groin injury and played 17:27, but defenseman Danny DeKeyser missed the game with a sore left foot after blocking a shot in the loss to the Stars. DeKeyser is listed as day-to-day.

"Detroit is a good team," Gallant said of the franchise he starred with for nine seasons. "They're a fast team. They're off to a pretty good start this year. I think it's going to be a fast game. They're got a lot of quick forwards. Hopefully we'll play well against them."