The Henderson Silver Knights welcomed the San Diego Gulls to Lee’s Family Forum for the annual Lucky Launch game. The Silver Knights, wearing festive green and red jerseys, secured their 5th win over the Gulls this season with a 1-0 victory.
Since 2021, Henderson has collected and donated over 25,000 stuffed animals to the Salvation Army in Southern Nevada during the annual Lucky Launch games. This year’s launch happened in the second period when the Silver Knights scored their first goal of the game. A total of 5,911 stuffed animals were collected.
Carl Lindbom started in goal for the Silver Knights. The men took the offensive side of the ice to start the period. Riley McKay and Dylan Coghlan got the first shots on Gulls goalie Calle Clang. Henderson had an early power play but couldn’t find the back of the net. The Gulls didn’t get a shot during their first power play. Defense was strong from both teams, and getting set up to shoot was a chore. The Knights held San Diego to an over four-minute shooting drought towards the end of the period. Henderson took the upper hand in shots on goal with 12 compared to San Diego’s nine.
The second period started in favor of the Gulls. Joe Fleming was put in the penalty box for roughing. Jonas Røndbjerg registered the only Silver Knights’ shot before a 10:38 shooting drought. The Gulls had another power play, and Røndbjerg broke Henderson’s drought with two shots. Soon after, McKay scored and put the Silver Knights in the lead, 1-0. After the hundreds of stuffed animals were thrown on the ice and cleaned up, the Knights were in control on offense. They ended up with 10 shots on goal, and the Gulls had 15.
Just 22 seconds into the final period, McKay and San Diego’s Tyson Hinds got five-minute penalties for fighting. The competition was even throughout the first 10 minutes, but the men played dirtier. Two Gulls were penalized for hooking and slashing, and little fights broke out often. Both teams had eight shots in the period. The Gulls led the game with 32 shots and the Knights had 29. Henderson is now 5-2 against San Diego this season.