The Vegas Golden Knights secured their second consecutive win with a 6-2 victory against the Montreal Canadiens Saturday night at Bell Centre.
A dominant middle frame saw the Golden Knights explode for five unanswered goals, three of which came in the span of just 2:17.
Cal Burke scored the first goal of his NHL career, and eleven different Golden Knights found the scoresheet. Adin Hill turned aside 15 of 17 shots for his ninth win of the year.
Nicolas Hague returned to the lineup after missing three weeks of action; he played 15:09.
After a scoreless first period that saw both goalies make timely saves, the Golden Knights finally broke through, solving Habs netminder Sam Montembeault.
A stellar and deceptive play by Brayden McNabb got the offense started, as he delayed before finding a wide-open Tomas Hertl to give the Golden Knights a lead less than five minutes into the second. It was the second straight game in which Vegas scored first after yielding the first goal in the previous five.
Burke had been noticeable in the first period, and he got rewarded with a promotion to the top line. After Jack Eichel recovered a Kirby Dach turnover, Ivan Barbashev found Burke in the slot, and the 27-year-old made no mistake, doubling Vegas’ lead at 8:18.
The secondary assist on the play gave Eichel 30 points on the year, making him the fasest Golden Knight to hit that milestone in franchise history (21 games).
Barbashev got one of his own less than a minute later as he and Eichel teamed up on an odd-man rush for Barbashev’s ninth of the season.
But the Golden Knights weren’t finished.
Once again, Vegas capitalized in transition. This time, Noah Hanifin found Tanner Pearson in the slot.
The Golden Knights added one more for good measure, as Keegan Kolesar scored on the rebound to make it 5-0 with just under three minutes remaining.
It marked the third time in team history that Vegas scored five goals in a single period.
The Golden Knights scored five goals on 13 shots while holding Montreal to just two in an absolutely dominant period.
The Canadiens cut Vegas’ lead to three goals with tallies from Emil Heineman (on the power play) and Jayden Struble.
However,
But Eichel put the finishing touches on a lopsided win with his seventh of the year for the 6-2 final. Eichel now has 32 points in 21 games.
The Golden Knights came out to play and ended up lighting the lamp six times on a goalie who made a number of key stops in the first period. Vegas capitalized on turnovers, thrived in transition and finished chances.
How much the win says about the Golden Knights overall is difficult to say, as Montreal has one of the worst records in the NHL.
That being said, the Golden Knights put on a clinic in the second period, and this is the kind of win that could give them a confidence boost headed into the final two matchups on this season-long five-game road trip.
The Golden Knights have now gone 5-1-1 in their last seven games away from T-Mobile Arena after starting the year 0-3-1 on the road.
Next up for the Golden Knights is the Philadelphia Flyers, who are coming off a come-from-behind 3-2 overtime win, followed by a tilt against the Colorado Avalanche, who have now won three in a row.