7 Observations: Golden Knights Blow Multigoal Lead, Fall in Shootout

The Vegas Golden Knights (49-22-10) played the first of a season-ending two-game road trip. They got off to a strong start and held a multigoal lead for over 20 minutes before allowing three goals in the third period. They quickly tied the game but ultimately fell 5-4 to the Calgary Flames (40-27-14) in a shootout. 

You couldn’t have blamed the Golden Knights if they started the game flat and uninspired. They’ve already clinched a playoff berth and won the Pacific Division. But they started the game well, played a full 60 minutes– 65, really– and outshot the Flames 42-28.

The Golden Knights struck first 5:25 into the first period. Pavel Dorofeyev picked off Joel Hanley’s pass and worked it deep to Brandon Saad. The puck ended up back on Dorofeyev’s stick; he again tried to find Saad, but Nazem Kadri accidentally redirected it past Dustin Wolf. 

The Flames tied the game at 10:11 in the first period on the power play. MacKenzie Weegar set Morgan Frost up for a one-timer that snuck through Ilya Samsonov. 

The Golden Knights regained the lead at 14:52 in the first period. Ivan Barbashev sprung Nic Roy on a breakaway, and Roy went forehand-backhand-forehand to beat Dustin Wolf glove-side. 

The Golden Knights struck again with just over 20 seconds remaining in the first period. Brandon Saad threaded a pass to Tomáš Hertl, and Hertl redirected it home. 

The score didn’t change in the second period. The Golden Knights outshot the Flames 13-8, and William Karlsson took a late penalty to send the Flames to their first power play. 

The Flames broke through in the third period and scored three unanswered to take the lead. Nazem Kadri scored on the power play just 32 seconds into the period. 

Just over 30 seconds later, Mikael Backlund flung a seeing-eye shot that redirected off Ben Hutton and past Ilya Samsonov. 

At 11:01 in the third period, the Flames took their first lead of the night. Adam Klapka snuck through Zach Whitecloud and Nic Hague, and Brayden Pachal banked a shot off his skate and past Samsonov. 

The Golden Knights tied the game just 11 seconds later. Dustin Wolf saved Brandon Saad’s shot but backed the puck into his own net. The Flames challenged for goaltender interference, but the goal stood. 

Both teams had their fair share of chances in overtime but couldn’t finish. The Flames ultimately won in the shootout.

Three stars of the game: Adam Klapka, Brandon Saad, Nazem Kadri

7 Golden Knights Observations

1. You have to credit the Golden Knights. This is a game where they had nothing to play for, but you wouldn’t have known it to watch them. William Karlsson turned on the jets to get a high-danger chance right off the opening draw, and they never looked back. By all accounts, the Flames should have been the hungrier team. But the Golden Knights gave them very little.

2. Ilya Samsonov looked good early on and made a few nice saves off of redirections. However, he allowed three leaky goals, wiping away the Golden Knights’ hard defensive work.

3. Brandon Saad played very well. He’s been a bit quiet offensively recently, so a night like this is big heading into the playoffs. He’s the sort of guy opponents don’t want to get hot.

4. Saad’s linemates– Tomáš Hertl and Pavel Dorofeyev– were also excellent. That line has picked up exactly where they left off before Hertl’s injury. Dorofeyev’s goal was a bit of a strange one, but he forced a turnover to get things going offensively. Hertl isn’t struggling to get back to his game, and his goal proves it.

5. Nic Roy’s goal was his 15th of the season, tying a career-high set in 2020-2021.

6. All things considered, in a meaningless game 81, there was a lot to like. The Golden Knights played well, rested key players, and got depth players reps before the playoffs. They recorded a point to clinch home-ice against everyone but the Winnipeg Jets. And most importantly, no one got injured.

7. The Golden Knights will face the Minnesota Wild in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. They’re 3-0-0 against the Wild this season and have outscored them 12-4.