The Vegas Golden Knights bounced back on Thursday with a much needed win against the Winnipeg Jets, and held tough against a very good squad that pressed all night long. The Golden Knights entered the evening fresh off a brutal overtime loss against the Nashville Predators which saw them concede four consecutive goals, and Logan Thompson returned to the net and was spectacular with 39 saves on the evening. He went 12 for 12 while the Golden Knights were shorthanded five different times, and was a big difference maker.
Pavel Dorofeyev scored for the third time in the last four games, and got the team off an running a little after the midpoint of the first period.
The goal was his 12th of the season, and he’s been a very underrated offensive contributor who has stepped up when the team has needed a bit of a spark. The goal was the only one in the first 20 minutes of play, and things remained that way until 3:31 of the second frame.
Sean Monahan scored what would be Winnipeg’s only tally of the game, and the score remained tied at 1 for the remainder of the second, and most of the third period too. Ivan Barbashev broke the tie with just under six minutes to go to make it 2-1, and he followed that up with an empty netter to make it 2-1 almost 4 minutes later.
Jack Eichel but a bow on the victory with an empty netter of his own, and the Golden Knights secured the 4-1 win to improve to 40-25-8, and they have temporarily moved into third place in the Pacific division with 88 points in 73 games. The Los Angeles Kings have 87 points in 71 games played, and as of this writing they trail the Edmonton Oilers in the third period. If the score holds and they lose in regulation, they will trail the Golden Knights by a point while having one game in hand.
In any case, the Nashville Predators game aside, the Golden Knights have done a nice job picking up points as of late. The team’s playoff security is starting to firm up a bit, and they can breathe a little easier for the interim. Vegas will enjoy a day off on Friday as they travel to Minnesota, and return to action on Saturday against the Wild.