McKenna’s Matchup of the Day: Mar. 16 – Jacob Markstrom vs. Jonathan Quick

Former NHL netminder Mike McKenna provides his Daily Faceoff Starting Goalie Matchup of the Day for Thu. Mar. 16, 2023:

Why I like this matchup:

The Flames are 0-7-1 playing in Vegas at T-Mobile Arena: Calgary has never won a contest in the state of Nevada. The Flames are running out of time to qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs. Can Markstrom steal tonight’s game for Calgary?

There’s no denying the Jonathan Quick revenge tour at this point. He’s gone 4-0-0 as a member of the Vegas Golden Knights since coming over from the Columbus Blue Jackets at the NHL trade deadline. Is his performance a sign of things to come?

What to watch for:

One of Markstrom’s downfalls this season has been early goals against. And Vegas has made a habit of scoring first during the month of March. So I want to see how Markstrom fares in the first period – especially considering the Flames are playing on the road. The 6-foot-6 Swede is 3-1-1 in his past five starts, including a monster 40-shot shutout against the Minnesota Wild on Mar. 7.

Quick has become the de facto No.1 goaltender for the Golden Knights. And with Robin Lehner, Laurent Brossoit, Adin Hill, and Logan Thompson all on the injured reserve list, it appears Quick is destined to be the starting netminder for the Golden Knights during the Stanley Cup playoffs. He might be unbeaten in four starts with Vegas, but Quick has allowed seven of nine goals in the third period. How he finishes games is something to keep an eye on.

What fantasy owners should do:

Quick’s recent shutout against the Carolina Hurricanes skews his stats slightly. But a win seems likely tonight given Calgary’s track record in Sin City. I’d start him. Markstrom has a career .893 save percentage against the Golden Knights during the regular season along with a 4-8-1 record. With so many NHL games tonight, I would look to start another goaltender if possible.

Bottom line for Jacob Markstrom:

Two goals against or less is what it’s going to take to beat Vegas.

Bottom line for Jonathan Quick:

He’s had a strong start with the Golden Knights, but needs to improve his third period performance.