Hard day’s Knight
PACIORETTY’S OT GOAL ENDS COLORADO’S 7-GAME HOME WIN STREAK
A more physical and combative game unfolded Saturday as the Vegas Golden Knights and Avalanche concluded a two-game set between West Division giants at Ball Arena.
The Knights ultimately won the fight, but the Avs won the two-day war and still managed to extend their points streak to 10 games (8-0-2).
Max Pacioretty took advantage of a broken stick to Avalanche defenseman Devon Toews and scored 1:56 into overtime to give Vegas a 3-2 victory to avenge Thursday’s 5-1 loss.
Colorado, which was outshot for the first time in more than a month and saw its seven-game home winning streak end, collected three-of-four points in the series and is 3-2-1 on the season against the Knights.
Big-and-tough Vegas (23-8-1), however, is now a point ahead of the Avalanche (21-8-4) for the lead in the West Division standings, with a game in hand. The Knights, who had surrendered six consecutive goals from Thursday into the first period Saturday, outhit the Avs 18-8 and blocked 18 shots to Colorado’s 11 in the finale. The Avs were expecting a fight. “Whichever game any team wants to play, we’re just going to play our game,” Toews said. “That’s just the way it’s going to be.”
He added: “We had more to give. I don’t think it was a bad game from our team but it wasn’t our game. We set a standard for ourselves in how we play and the level we compete at. (Today) was just one of those (days) where we’re a little bit behind or lacking in a couple different areas. I don’t think we’ve been outshot in a while. Just getting pucks on net — that’s been a recipe
of success for us over the last three, four weeks. We’ll look at the tape and we’ll get better.”
Colorado probably should have had a power play in OT, but referees didn’t call a trip on a Vegas defender who sent Nathan MacKinnon to the ice and crashing into the sideboards in Vegas’ end. The Knights went on a 3on-1 on the play but goalie Philipp Grubauer made a splendid save to thwart the attack.
A minute later, Pacioretty tapped in a loose puck in the crease after Toews failed to clear it because his stick broke. Grubauer suffered his first loss in nine games and failed to secure his 100th career win.
Vegas outshot the Avs 34-24. It marked the first time Colorado didn’t produce 30 shots since Feb. 26 at Arizona (15 games) and the first time it was out-shot since Feb. 16 at Vegas (19 games).
“I thought it was a hard-fought game,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “We get into overtime and I didn’t like the non-call on MacKinnon getting tripped over there on the sideboards. It sets up a 3on-1. But we gotta be better too on the last play. We had a little tough luck on that, too. We get back on the rush pretty good. The puck lies there after Toews deflects it and breaks his stick so he misses on the clear and they put it in the back of the net.”
The Avs scored on the game’s first shot. It came from winger Joonas Donskoi, who carried the puck in from the right circle, toedragged around the first defender and used the second for a screen as his wrist shot beat goalie Marc-Andre Fleury.
Vegas tied it 1-1 on its first power play late in the first period. Defenseman Alex Martinez’s onetime slap shot nicked off the stick of the Avs’ Ryan Graves and past Grubauer. But the Avs regained the lead shortly thereafter when Toews and MacKinnon worked a give-and-go and Toews scored on the shot.
The Knights tied it again when William Carrier redirected Shea Theodore’s shot from the point, and it stood 2-2 to begin the third frame.
Footnotes. The Avs will take Sunday off ahead of Monday’s game against the visiting Anaheim Ducks. … Former NHL forward Stu Grimson, now a scout for the Seattle Kraken, attended the game. The Avs will lose one good player in the offseason expansion draft.