The Vegas Golden Knights improved to 2-0-0 on the year when they defeated the San Jose Sharks 4-1 at SAP Center Thursday night. It was the club’s 21st regular-season victory against the Sharks and 11th all-time win in San Jose (11-0-3).
The turning point came at the tail end of the second period when Vegas scored two goals in quick succession to take a 3-1 lead into the second intermission.
Four players scored their first of the season in the win: Michael Amadio, Nicolas Hague, Nicolas Roy and Brayden Pachal. Pachal notched his first career NHL goal to give Vegas a 4-1 lead early in the third period. Hague and William Karlsson recorded multi-point efforts.
Logan Thompson turned aside 22 of 23 shots for a .957 save percentage in his first start and win since March 23.
The Golden Knights-Sharks rivalry was alive and well early on, as Keegan Kolesar dropped the gloves with Kyle Burroughs after Burroughs decked Amadio at the red line. But Amadio had the last word, as he opened the scoring for Vegas 15:25 into the first.
It was a fantastic play by Karlsson, who skated behind the net and found the wide-open Amadio in the slot just seconds after Vegas killed off its second penalty of the game.
However, Filip Zadina scored his first with the Sharks to even things up at 1-1 just 2:23 later.
The start of the second period was the worst stretch for the Golden Knights, who were sluggish and out of sorts. They didn’t record their first shot of the frame until the 12:27 mark. However, Vegas picked up the pace in the second half and ultimately won the period.
The Golden Knights broke open the game when they netted two goals in just 53 seconds in the final 89 seconds of the second to grab a 3-1 lead in the blink of an eye.
First, it was a Haguerbomb from the point, as Hague launched one that beat Sharks netminder Kaapo Kahkonen five-hole.
Less than a minute later, Roy broke in and beat Kahkonen cleanly with just 36 seconds left in the frame.
Jonas Rondbjerg, who was called up due to Brett Howden’s two-game suspension, made a strong pass through the neutral zone to set up Roy, who roofed one over Kahkonen. It was Rondbjerg’s first point of the season in his season debut. Pavel Dorofeyev also made his season debut with William Carrier out of the lineup due to an injury, and he recorded the primary assist on Vegas’ fourth goal of the evening.
That belonged to Pachal, who scored the first goal of his career just 2:11 into the third period in his 14th career game to put the game out of reach.
Vegas held on to the three-goal lead for the rest of the period, closing out the win to jump out to a 2-0-0 start for the second year in a row.
After the game, Pachal said his goal wasn’t “part of the game plan, but you’ll take ’em when you get ’em. … It’s going to be a lifelong memory, and I’m super grateful for that.”
Head coach Bruce Cassidy said that with Zach Whitecloud and Alec Martinez out, Pachal knows “he has to do things to help the team win, and he certainly did.” Cassidy said it was “a nice shot, good play all around. I thought [Pachal] had a good game too, so it wasn’t just a lucky moment for him. He was solid all night.”
It wasn’t a perfect game for Vegas, but aside from the first half of the second period, the Golden Knights delivered another solid performance, once again demonstrating their ability to get through lulls, capitalize on chances and find ways to win.
Thompson played well, and the Golden Knights’ penalty kill continues to impress. The penalty kill finished the game 2-for-2 and is 6-for-6 on the season, picking up right where it left off after going 14-for-14 in the Stanley Cup Final.
The power play only had one opportunity and did not execute, but Vegas won the special teams battle once again, and the Golden Knights played with more discipline. After being shorthanded for 11 minutes against Seattle, Vegas took two minor penalties in the first period against the Sharks and then stayed out of the penalty box for the final 44:41 of the contest.
Another aspect of Vegas’ game that has carried over from the Stanley Cup run is the strength of the Golden Knights’ depth, and it’s the main reason Vegas is 2-0-0. Through two games, the Golden Knights have eight different goal scorers, and 16 of 20 skaters have recorded at least one point. The only players who have yet to find the scoresheet are Shea Theodore, Carrier (injured), Kolesar and Paul Cotter.
“I thought it was our guys that we don’t typically rely on that played some of the best hockey for us tonight,” Cassidy said. “When you’re a good team, you don’t need your top guys to have their “A” games all the time to win. … If you’re gonna be a good team and win on a regular basis, it can’t be one or two lines.”
But the top line had a noticeably effective first period despite not scoring. The trio of Jack Eichel, Jonathan Marchessault and Ivan Barbashev finished with a 12-2 edge in shot attempts in the first period just one game after all three scored a goal in the season opener. The chemistry on that line is humming, and much like last year, the Golden Knights are getting production from throughout the lineup.
The goaltending also has been top-notch. Both Adin Hill and Thompson have played well, and they’ve given up just two total goals for a combined save percentage of .964 through two games. The Golden Knights have not trailed so far this season.
“Both goalies, full value,” Cassidy said.
Alex Pietrangelo took a puck up high in the third period and was bleeding on the ice, but he was eventually able to skate to the bench on his own. It’s unlikely to be anything serious, but that would be the third regular defenseman to be taken out of action if Pietrangelo misses any time.
The Golden Knights will return home to take on the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday before hosting the Dallas Stars Tuesday night at T-Mobile Arena.