Jack Eichel’s 5th Career Hat Trick Lifts Golden Knights Past Wild

The Vegas Golden Knights (43-20-8) have won four games in a row. Along the way, they’ve outscored their opponents 20-7. Even without leading goalscorer Tomáš Hertl, they scored five against a team that is bottom-ten in the league in goals allowed. Propelled by Jack Eichel’s hat trick, the Golden Knights beat the Minnesota Wild (40-27-5) on Tuesday by a final score of 5-1.

The Wild were fatigued early on— they played the Dallas Stars on Monday— and struggled to get anything going offensively. The Golden Knights held the Wild to just four shots in the first period, and in turn, they registered 11.

The Golden Knights broke the ice 6:23 into the first period. Jack Eichel had the puck and danced around Marco Rossi in the neutral zone. He entered the zone, pulled up, and threaded a cross-ice pass to Shea Theodore. Theodore found Mark Stone atop the goal crease, who sent a backhand pass to Eichel. Eichel had an empty net to shoot into and buried it.  

The rest of the first period was relatively uneventful. The Wild were solid defensively and kept the Golden Knights from getting to their game, but they struggled to do anything with the puck.

The second period contained more of the same. The Wild found their legs and registered 10 shots on goal, but most were relatively harmless. Adin Hill was strong and answered when called upon.

The Golden Knights were very disciplined; the Wild got their only power play opportunity at 2:43 in the second period from a too-many-men call. Their penalty kill has been stronger lately, and the Wild couldn’t get anything going.

The Golden Knights extended their lead at 8:22 in the second period. Mats Zuccarello intercepted Brett Howden’s pass intended for Tanner Pearson, then promptly turned the puck over to Noah Hanifin. Hanifin cut around Zuccarello, entered the zone, and wristed a shot high. Marc-André Fleury was caught out of position; when the puck rebounded off the end boards, Brett Howden tucked it in.

The Wild pushed following Howden’s goal, but the Golden Knights were up to the task defensively. They were smart with the puck and rarely out of position.

The Wild scored their only goal of the game 1:42 into the third period after a Golden Knight turnover. Adin Hill kicked out Mats Zuccarello’s shot, and the puck trickled to the corner. Mark Stone got to it first but turned it over to Zuccarello. Zuccarello gloved it down, curled around Ivan Barbashev, and found Marcus Johansson in the slot, who one-timed it past Hill.

The Wild seemed to gain new life from Johansson’s goal, and they started pushing. They thought they tied the game, but the officials immediately waved the goal off for a high stick.

The Golden Knights weathered the storm and got their only power play opportunity of the game with 5:16 remaining in the third period. William Karlsson won the faceoff back to Noah Hanifin, who walked the blue line and fed Jack Eichel.  Eichel sent it back to Hanifin, who surveyed the ice and passed it back to Eichel. Eichel drifted to the left dot and went off the post and in to beat Fleury far side. 

The Wild pulled Fleury for the extra attacker, and Tanner Pearson deposited the puck into the empty net.

Jack Eichel completed the hat trick with 2:32 remaining in the third period. He forced a turnover in the defensive zone, and Mark Stone sprung Eichel and Ivan Barbashev on a 2-on-1. Eichel sold the pass and beat Fleury five-hole from the right dot. 

“[Eichel] is just a good player,” said Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy. “He stands out every night.”

Golden Knights Game Notes

The Golden Knights swept the season series against the Wild for the second time, the first being during the 2022-23 season.

Adin Hill was very good on Tuesday. He saved 23 of 24 shots and ended the game with a .958 save percentage. However, what he did best won’t appear on the scoresheet. The Wild like to play a dump-and-chase game; Hill’s willingness to leave the net to play the puck rendered that ineffective. 

Brett Howden’s goal, which stood as the game-winner, puts him at 20 on the season. The most he’d ever scored in a single season before was nine, which he recorded in 2019-20 and 2021-22.

Tanner Pearson scored his 150th career goal into the empty net.

Shea Theodore was activated off of Injured Reserve before Tuesday’s game. He skated in his 500th career game as a Golden Knight and recorded an assist on Jack Eichel’s first goal of the night.

Jack Eichel has been on an absolute tear lately. He recorded his fifth career hat trick on Tuesday– the third Golden Knight hat trick in four games and their fourth in nine games. His three-goal game puts him at 90 points for the first time in his career. Eichel has seven goals and 20 points in 12 games during March, and the NHL named him the second star of the week on Monday.

We’ve got a MileSTONE! Mark Stone recorded two assists against the Wild, which puts him at 400 in his career.

Three stars of the game: Jack Eichel, Shea Theodore, Marcus Johansson