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Golden Knights complete 4-3 comeback win in shootout, sweep season series against Wild

Posted on by Jillian Wagner

The Vegas Golden Knights rallied with a late goal in the final minute of regulation before collecting the extra point in a 4-3 shootout victory against the Minnesota Wild Monday night at Xcel Energy Center.

Pavel Dorofeyev scored his second goal of the game with just 34.2 seconds remaining in regulation to force overtime, and Reilly Smith – back in the lineup after missing four games – scored the game-winning goal in the fifth round of the shootout to complete the come-from-behind win.

The win helped the Golden Knights complete the sweep of the season series against Minnesota after defeating the Wild 4-1 Saturday in Las Vegas.

Laurent Brossoit got his third consecutive start and finished the game with 30 saves on 33 shots for a .909 save percentage.

First period

Keegan Kolesar opened the scoring at the midway point of the first period when he got a piece of a Ben Hutton point shot to give the Golden Knights a 1-0 lead.


It was the lone goal of the opening frame, which was a solid start for the road team. Brossoit turned away all 12 shots he faced.

Score after one: 1-0 Vegas

Second period

Minnesota scored three goals in the second period, starting with Brandon Duhaime’s ninth of the season just 3:36 into the frame. Duhaime skated around Nicolas Hague and beat Brossoit top-shelf.


The Wild scored again to make it 2-1 just shy of the 14-minute mark when John Klingberg skated to the center of the zone before sending a wrist shot through traffic that beat the screened Brossoit.


But Vegas knotted things up at 2-2 less than three minutes later when Dorofeyev scored his first of the game on an absolute blast from downtown.

William Karlsson tipped a Minnesota past, allowing Smith to recover the turnover in the neutral zone before setting up Dorofeyev, who ripped it past Gustavsson for his sixth goal in nine games since returning to the lineup March 12.


However, the scorching-hot Matt Boldy scored what seemed like a back-breaking goal, taking the lead right back with just 41 seconds remaining in the period. He and Joel Eriksson Ek completed a give-and-go before Boldy slammed it into the open cage.


Score after two: 3-2 Minnesota

Third period

Down by a goal, the Golden Knights got a crucial power-play opportunity in the third period. Though Vegas had several good chances, the Golden Knights were unable to cash in. Vegas finished the game 0-for-3 on the man-advantage and 1-for-2 on the penalty kill.

But fortunately for Vegas, the Golden Knights had a stellar shift with the extra attacker that eventually led to Dorofeyev’s second of the game and seventh of the season.

It was a strong shift all-around for Vegas, but the play was made by Eichel, who protected the puck, dragging it up and around the stick of a sprawling Matt Dumba before sliding it back to Karlsson, who set it on a tee for Dorofeyev. Dorofeyev hammered it home with just 34.2 seconds remaining to even things up at 3-3 and force extra time.


Score after three: 3-3 tie

Extra time

The overtime period was intense, with non-stop action back and forth. Both teams had chances, with the Golden Knights getting the best one of all on a 2-on-1. However, Gustavsson shut down Alex Pietrangelo’s bid.


Ultimately, this game required a shootout, and both teams were up to the task, with several highlight-worthy goals scored on both sides. But it was the Golden Knights who came out on top with goals from Eichel, Dorofeyev and Smith.

In response to Eichel’s go-ahead goal, Minnesota’s Frederick Gaudreau found the back of the net, making him 8-for-8 on shootout attempts for the season; Eriksson Ek later faked Brossoit out of his skates before tucking the puck five-hole.

Eriksson Ek’s goal put the Wild ahead, making it a do-or-die situation for Dorofeyev. Not surprisingly, the 22-year-old came through, keeping Vegas alive with a dandy.


In the end, it was Smith who had the last word to complete the comeback and give Vegas the 4-3 shootout victory.


Once again, the Golden Knights found a way to win.

It wasn’t Vegas’ best effort, but it was an important road win against a hungry team looking to clinch a spot in the playoffs and rebound from its second regulation loss in 22 games.

The Golden Knights completed the series sweep over the Wild for the first time in franchise history, capitalizing on their chances and coming up with the clutch equalizer at the end.

Brossoit had another solid performance and has yet to lose in regulation this season; he is 4-0-3 on the year, with six of his seven starts reaching extra time.

It was the second straight game in which Vegas relied on depth scoring, but some of Vegas’ top players made a difference when it mattered most.

After having a rough game with linemates Ivan Barbashev and Jonathan Marchessault, Eichel came through with the elite play to set up Dorofeyev’s last-minute goal, was all over the ice in overtime and then scored to kick things off for Vegas in the shootout. Plus, Smith and Karlsson combined for three points, recording assists on each of Dorofeyev’s timely tallies.

The win helps Vegas extend its lead in the Western Conference and preserve its narrow lead in the Pacific Division. The Golden Knights are now three points ahead of Los Angeles and four ahead of Edmonton, with all three clubs having played 77 games.

The Golden Knights will finish the second half of the back-to-back Tuesday in Nashville against a Predators team that suffered a 5-1 loss to Dallas Monday night. It’s unclear if Chandler Stephenson, who missed the road game in Minnesota due to illness, will be available.

Talking Points