The Tahoe Knight Monsters took on the Allen Americans in game thirty-one of the season. The Tahoe Knight Monsters are the ECHL affiliate of the Vegas Golden Knights. The Knight Monsters were in third place in the division with a record of 16-11-3. The Allen Americans are the ECHL affiliate of the Ottawa Senators. The Americans were in fourth place in the division. The Rush have had record of 14-10-2.
The Tahoe Knight Monsters entered this matchup still in search of their seventeenth win of the season, eager to bounce back after a tough shootout loss to the Rapid City Rush on Wednesday. With the calendar turning to 2026, Tahoe is motivated to get back in the win column and continue proving that they belong among the league’s top teams. On the other side, the Allen Americans are chasing their fifteenth victory of the season and were equally hungry to secure their first win of the new year. With both clubs looking to start 2026 on a positive note, this game set the stage for a competitive and meaningful showdown.
#39 Cameron Whitehead got the start in net for the Tahoe Knight Monsters. It was his sixteenth game played this season for Tahoe. #33 Marco Costantini got the start in net for the Allen Americans. It was his eighteenth game played this season for Allen.
Two minutes into the first period, the Tahoe Knight Monsters scored the opening goal of the game. #76 Trent Swick got the first goal of the game. His goal was assisted by #25 Casey Bailey.
Three minutes into the game, Spencer Asuchak of the Allen Americans was called for slashing. On the power play, #25 Casey Bailey scored to give the Knight Monsters a two goal lead. His goal was assisted by #15 Jake McGrew and #19 Luke Adam.
With under six minutes left in the opening period, Olivier LeBlanc of Tahoe was called for delay of game. With under a minute left in the first period, #65 Devon Paliani scored to give the Knight Monsters a three goal lead. His goal was assisted by #25 Casey Bailey and #76 Trent Swick.
The score was 3-0 Tahoe Knight Monsters after the first period.
The second period started with a change in net for the Allen Americans. #33 Marco Costantini was replaced by #32 David Tendeck. Thirty-nine seconds into the second period, Trent Swick of Tahoe was called for tripping. Five minutes into the period, Danny Katic of Allen was called for roughing. The game started to heat up with under five minutes left in the second period when Jake McGrew of Tahoe was called for fighting, Thomas Caron of Allen was called for fighting and interference. On the same play Braidan Simmons-Fischer given a ten-minute game misconduct for fighting and a ten-minute misconduct for continuing altercation totaling for twenty penalty minutes for him on one play. This resulted in a Knight Monsters power play. On the following play Spencer Asuchak of Allen was called for cross-checking. Neither team scored in the second period. The Tahoe Knight Monsters still had a 3-0 lead going into the third period.
With under eight minutes left in the game, Allen received a bench minor penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct. On the power play, Trent Swick of Tahoe was called for holding. With under six minutes to go in the game, Nate Kallen of Tahoe was called for tripping. On the power play, Allen decided to pull their goalie for the extra attacker. On the penalty kill, the Knight Monsters scored on the empty net. The empty net goal was scored by #10 Mike O’Leary. His goal was assisted by #14 Connor Marritt. This goal may be the first empty net short handed goal in Tahoe Knight Monsters history. This goal gave the Knight Monsters a four goal lead.
With under two minutes left in the game, Danny Katic of Allen was called for roughing. On the power play, the Knight Monsters scored to take a five goal lead with forty-three seconds left in the game. #25 Casey Bailey scored his second goal of the game. His goal was assisted by #19 Luke Adam and #96 Brennan Kapcheck.
With seventeen seconds left in the game, there was a line brawl after a play in front of the Tahoe net that ended in a collision with the netminder. Everyone grabbed someone and it looked like everyone was throwing punches. They officials were braking things up but players continued to go after each other. Danny Katic of Allen (who just got out of the penalty box) would be the only one to receive any penalties. Katic was given a five-minute major penalty for charging, a roughing penalty, and a ten minute game misconduct for charging. The final score was 5-0 Tahoe Knight Monsters.
https://echl.com/videos/allen-americans-vs-tahoe-knight-monsters-jan-2-2026
The Tahoe Knight Monsters came out ready to play, and it was clear early on that the Allen Americans were not. Tahoe struck first and never looked back, building an early lead and steadily adding to it as the game progressed. The Knight Monsters controlled the pace, dictated play, and maintained their advantage throughout the night. As the Americans fell further behind, frustration began to set in, boiling over late in the second period and again in the final seconds of the game. Tahoe put the result beyond any doubt in the third period by scoring two more goals, sealing a decisive win.
Anthony Collins missed his second straight game for Tahoe, and while the outcome was convincing, his absence was noticeable in other ways. Collins brings a calming presence and an edge that teams have to respect. With him on the bench, opponents tend to think twice before crossing the line physically. It’s hard not to wonder if Allen would have felt as emboldened to take runs at Tahoe (particularly the goaltender) had Collins been in the lineup. From Allen’s perspective, this was a classic ECHL meltdown. As the game slipped out of reach, they resorted to physical play out of frustration rather than finding answers on the scoreboard.
This was Tahoe’s first win of 2026, and it came in exactly the fashion fans want to see. The Knight Monsters scored early, built on their lead, stayed in control, and kept their composure when the game turned chippy. With this game complete, the regular season is officially at the halfway mark for Tahoe. The Knight Monsters are competing at a high level, but consistency has been the missing piece so far. Despite having played the most games in the division, they sit just two wins out of first place. There is still plenty of hockey left to be played, and if Tahoe can consistently replicate the performance they delivered in this game, the second half of the season could be very promising.
Both teams had 39 shots. The Tahoe Knight Monsters had the better shooting percentage. Tahoe had three more power plays. The Allen Americans had 54 penalty minutes. The Tahoe Knight Monsters had 13 penalty minutes. The Allen Americans were 0 for 4 on the power play. The Tahoe Knight Monsters were 2 for 7 on the power play. #39 Cameron Whitehead saved all 39 shots for a 100% save percentage for Tahoe. It was his first shutout for the Tahoe Knight Monsters. It was also the first Tahoe Knight Monsters shutout this season. #33 Marco Costantini saved 5 of 8 shots for a 62% save percentage for Allen. #32 David Tendeck saved 29 of 30 shots for a 96% save percentage for Allen. Overall Allen stopped 34 of 39 shots for an 87% save percentage.
The Tahoe Knight Monsters now have a record of 17-11-3 with 37 points. Tahoe are in 9th place overall in the ECHL. Tahoe are in 4th place in the ECHL Western Conference. Tahoe are in 3rd place in the ECHL Western Conference Mountain Division. The Knight Monsters are in a playoff spot.
The Tahoe Knight Monsters are set to face the Allen Americans in the thirty-second game of the season. This matchup is the second of three in a row. The puck is dropping on Saturday, January 3rd, 2025, at 7:00 PM.
Zac Electrifly 
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