Golden Knights Shock Lightning, Score 3 in First Period; Lose Hertl

For the third time this season, the Vegas Golden Knights (42-20-8) swept a back-to-back. They swept their three-game homestand and outscored their opponents 15-6. However, their 4-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning (40-25-5) was marred by an injury to their leading goal scorer.

In recent weeks, the Golden Knights have struggled with slow starts. That was not the case on Sunday against the Lightning. They got to their game right from puck drop. They were hard on pucks and showed no signs of fatigue after playing just 24 hours before. 

The Golden Knights struck three times in the first period and protected their league for the final 40 minutes. They’re one of the best teams in the league at playing with a lead, and they showed it on Sunday.

The Golden Knights broke the ice on the power play at 11:02 in the first period. Alex Pietrangelo surveyed the ice and fed William Karlsson. Karlsson drifted towards the goal line and threaded a pass right to Nic Roy, who chipped it past Vasilevskiy. 

The Golden Knights extended their lead at 13:33 in the first period. ​​Brayden Point tried to clear the puck, but Ivan Barbashev slowed it and kept Jake Guentzel from getting to it. Reilly Smith corralled the puck on his way off the ice, held it, and backhanded a pass to Tomáš Hertl. Hertl skated through the slot and ripped a shot around Victor Hedman that beat Andrei Vasilevskiy blocker side. 

There was a scary sight on the Golden Knights’ third power play opportunity at the end of the first period. Mark Stone fed Pavel Dorofeyev back door, who ripped a shot that ricocheted off the crossbar and into Stone’s face. Stone went down and skated off the ice, gushing blood. He smiled, waved to the crowd, and was back on the ice to start the second period. 

​​Just after the power play expired, the Golden Knights struck again. Andrei Vasilevskiy tried to clear the puck, but Zach Whitecloud held it in at the blue line. He sent a cross-ice pass to Jack Eichel, who one-timed it past Vasilevskiy. 

The Lightning pushed in the second period, but the Golden Knights prevented them from executing breakout passes. The Golden Knights cut through the neutral zone with relative ease but made it very difficult for the Lightning to gain speed off the rush. 

The Lightning capitalized on their lone good look in the second period. Darren Raddysh sent a stretch pass to Gage Goncalves, and Goncalves redirected it between his legs past Ben Hutton. Nick Paul collected the puck and raced off on a 2-on-1 with Oliver Bjorkstrand. Paul opted to shoot and wristed a shot past Ilya Samsonov far side. 

The third period was largely uneventful. Both teams had looks; Vasilevskiy and Samsonov were up to the task. Shots were 9-9, and the Golden Knights outchanced the Lightning 8-5.

The real story of the game came at 14:11 in the third period. Tomáš Hertl blocked Oliver Bjorkstrand’s shot and was off to the races on a breakaway. Andrei Vasilevskiy kicked Hertl’s shot aside, and Emil Lilleberg leveled Hertl with a hit that sent him flying into the boards. Hertl got up, favoring his right arm, and headed right down the tunnel. 

The Golden Knights failed to score on the ensuing power play. Hertl did not return to the game, and William Karlsson took his place on the top unit.

The Lightning pulled Andrei Vasilevskiy for the extra attacker. Brett Howden won the defensive zone draw, and Alex Pietrangelo bumped the puck to Nic Hague, who buried it in the empty net from downtown.

When Lilleberg exited the box, Keegan Kolesar repeatedly tried to challenge him; Lilleberg declined Kolesar’s offer. So, as Lilleberg skated away, Kolesar swung at him and was sent to the box for a slash.

Lightning can, in fact, strike the same place twice, and it happened on Sunday when Nikita Kucherov snuck Tampa Bay’s second goal of the game past Ilya Samsonov with five seconds remaining in the third period. 

Golden Knights Game Notes

The Lightning are the last Eastern Conference team that the Golden Knights will see this season unless they make it to the Stanley Cup Finals. Their remaining 12 regular season games are all against Western Conference opponents.

When he spoke postgame, Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy was none too happy about Lilleberg’s hit on Hertl. 

“The call is what it is,” said Cassidy. “[Lilleberg] is playing, I don’t know that well as a big guy, and he’s trying to establish himself in the league. But that’s a senseless hit to me. In a situation like that, when a guy’s in a defenseless position, not a threat, and the puck’s in the corner. It’s unfortunate for us, and hopefully [Hertl] is fine, but we won’t know that right away. He’s playing some of the best hockey he’s probably played in his career… Hopefully, he heals up quick. We’re hitting the road; we’ll know more once we get [to Minnesota].”

Jack Eichel’s goal, which stood as the game-winner, put him at 87 points on the season. The Golden Knights have never had a 100-point player in franchise history; Eichel could very well become the first. They play 12 more regular season games. 

Before his injury, Tomáš Hertl took sole possession of the team lead in goals with 31. Pavel Dorofeyev is right behind him with 30.

Nic Roy scored goals in both of the back-to-back games. He scored his second power play goal of the season on Sunday.

Ilya Samsonov outplayed Andrei Vasilevskiy on Sunday. He was exceptional, and the Golden Knights did a great job in front of him. They cleared away rebounds and boxed Lightning players out allowing Samsonov to see shots. Samsonov made 35 saves, had a save percentage of .946, and saved 1.46 goals above expected. 

Three stars of the game: Ilya Samsonov, Nic Roy, Jack Eichel