The Vegas Golden Knights pulled off their seventh come-from-behind win when trailing after two periods when they defeated the Boston Bruins 4-3 Saturday afternoon at TD Garden.
Tomas Hertl scored the game-winning goal with just 70 seconds remaining in regulation to lift Vegas to victory. It was the club’s second power-play tally of the tilt, and it helped the Golden Knights clinch back-to-back wins for the first time in more than a month in the final game before the 4 Nations Face-Off break.
The Bruins were the better team early, and Boston opened the scoring on a backdoor tap-in by Brad Marchand just 3:17 into the contest. A Noah Hanifin turnover behind the net set up the eventual goal, with Marchand left alone in front.
A sloppy first period put the Golden Knights in a 2-0 hole midway through the opening frame, as Nikita Zadorov scored at 13:49. The goal was unassisted but came at the tail end of a dominant shift by the Bruins, who won multiple battles in front of the net before Zadorov’s blast broke through.
The Bruins had momentum leading up to the goal after an altercation that started between Pavel Dorofeyev and Trent Frederic and ended with a fight between Keegan Kolesar and Oliver Wahlstrom. Zadorov’s goal came just 25 seconds later.
However, the Bruins took a penalty 41 seconds after that on a dangerous trip by John Beecher, setting up Vegas’ first power play of the afternoon.
The Golden Knights’ red-hot power play went to work, converting 39 seconds into the man-advantage as Mark Stone tipped a Shea Theodore shot past Jeremy Swayman. That made it 2-1 with just under five minutes remaining in the first period. Brandon Saad recorded the secondary assist on the play for his second point with the Golden Knights.
The Golden Knights had a chance to reset the score on another power play, but Boston’s penalty kill held Vegas without a shot.
The Golden Knights were the better team in the second period, but an Ilya Samsonov gaffe behind the net put Boston up by two late in the frame. Samsonov got caught between playing the puck and leaving it for Brayden McNabb, ultimately turning it over and then failing to get into position for Morgan Geekie’s shot.
But the hockey gods gifted Vegas with a late goal, as a seemingly harmless shot by Zach Whitecloud somehow got through Swayman and ended up crossing the goal line. The play was reviewed but counted, making it a 3-2 game with just 34 seconds on the clock.
The Golden Knights scored the only two goals in the third period.
First, Dorofeyev was the beneficiary of a great pass by Theodore, who collected his 41st assist of the year on the play, though it all started with a strong entry and setup by Jack Eichel.
The equalizer came at 4:54 of the final frame.
In the end, the game came down to a late power play for the Golden Knights.
It appeared as though Dorofeyev had his 24th marker of the season, but a successful challenge by Boston for the obvious goaltender interference on the play erased that lead.
It didn’t take long for the Golden Knights’ power play to strike again, however. This time, Eichel bypassed the usual pass to Stone and instead went straight to Hertl in the bumper. Hertl turned and fired a shot that slipped between Swayman’s pad and glove to make it a 4-3 game with 1:10 remaining.
Vegas came close to scoring on the empty net on the next shift, thus forcing David Pastrnak to take a penalty that essentially ended the game. The Golden Knights closed out the 4-3 win to wrap up the road trip with a 2-2-0 split.
The Golden Knights enter the 4 Nations Face-Off break with a 33-17-6 record and 72 points.
The power play played a significant role in the win, but Samsonov’s contributions cannot be overstated. He made many timeless saves and had a few highlight-reel stops, including one on Geekie in the first period.
Of course, it was his blunder in the second period that allowed Boston to restore its two-goal lead. However, Samsonov stood tall for Vegas, allowing his teammates to overcome 2-0 and 3-1 deficits and rally for a critical two points. He also held off the crucial fourth goal against that has plagued Vegas all year.
The Golden Knights, as a team, turned things around after a rough first period in which they were weak on sticks and struggled getting through the neutral zone. Vegas outshot the Bruins 16-6 in the second period and 27-12 in the final 40 minutes. After falling behind 3-1, the Golden Knights scored three unanswered goals, all of which came within five minutes of the start or end of a period. Vegas played to every whistle, answered the call physically, limited Boston’s offense and shut down the Bruins’ only power play of the afternoon.
Saad, Stone and Brett Howden played very well as a unit, leading 17-7 in shot attempts and 9-3 in shots in 6:42 despite being on the ice for a goal against. All three found the scoresheet, and it was Howden who drove to the empty net at the end of regulation to force the Pastrnak hook.
Eichel had yet another impressive effort and continues to shine for the Golden Knights. He made the pass to Hertl on the game-winner and set up the play on Dorofeyev’s equalizer. As a result, Eichel is now tied for the franchise record for most assists in a season with 50, pulling even with David Perron, who accomplished the feat in Vegas’ inaugural campaign.
Notably, Theodore is playing some of the best hockey of his career. Not only is he collecting points at a rapid rate, but he’s making a difference in every area of the game. That has been especially important with Alex Pietrangelo battling a nagging injury and Hanifin delivering inconsistent play.
Theodore will join Stone and Adin Hill (as well as Bruce Cassidy) in representing Canada in the 4 Nations Face-Off, while Eichel and Hanifin will compete for Team USA. William Karlsson and Pietrangelo were selected to play for Sweden and Canada, respectively, but will not be competing due to injury.
The latest injury the Golden Knights will be forced to contend with involves Victor Olofsson, who exited the game after his first shift and did not return due to an upper-body injury. Fortunately for Vegas, Olofsson will have a few weeks to recover before the Golden Knights return for the final stretch of the regular season.
The Golden Knights are next in action Feb. 22 against Vancouver. They will travel to Los Angeles to take on the Kings on Feb. 24 and will return home for a clash against Chicago to close out the month.
Statistics courtesy of Natural Stat Trick.