Jack Eichel scored twice, Adin Hill made 26 saves, and the Vegas Golden Knights triumphed over the Winnipeg Jets 5-2 on Thursday night.
Eichel recorded his third multi-goal game in 39 appearances for Vegas since joining last season. This marks the 32nd time in his career he has scored two or more goals in a game.
Under the guidance of first-year coach Bruce Cassidy, the Golden Knights have had an impressive start to the season. They have improved to 4-1-0 and outscored their opponents 17-10.
William Karlsson contributed a goal and an assist, while Chandler Stephenson and Jonathan Marchessault scored for Vegas. Alex Pietrangelo provided two assists, and Hill’s performance improved his record to 2-0.
“Our energy right from the get-go was 100%,” said Hill, who enjoyed a four-goal lead by the end of the first period. “We played a strong game and looked really good.”
With Calgary’s loss to Buffalo, the Golden Knights now sit atop the Pacific Division.
Neal Pionk had a goal and an assist for Winnipeg, while Pierre-Luc Dubois scored. David Rittich made 27 saves for the Jets, who were coming off a back-to-back road series after defeating the defending Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche 4-3 in overtime on Wednesday.
“We knew they played last night, traveled here, and it’s never easy,” Eichel said. “We were rested and ready to go. We played well in the first 20 minutes and found a way to win from there.”
Eichel scored after Reilly Smith raced down the left side and delivered a perfect pass into the slot. Eichel took two strides and fired the puck into the upper right corner.
Less than two minutes later, Karlsson made it 2-0 by converting Michael Amadio’s pass from behind the goal. Stephenson extended the lead to 3-0 when his centering pass deflected off Jets defender Brenden Dillon and past Rittich.
Eichel scored his second goal of the period, with both teams serving penalties. He intercepted Rittich’s clearing pass in the slot, twirled around in the circle, and fired the puck home to give Vegas a four-goal lead.
“I liked our energy,” said Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy. “We approached the game the right way. The guys were well rested and ready to go.”
Dubois ended Hill’s shutout bid early in the second period by firing a rebound through Hill’s pads. Pionk scored his third goal of the season in the third period, while Marchessault sealed the win with an empty-netter.
“You scored four goals last night in Colorado, and unfortunately, you spot a team tonight,” said Winnipeg defenseman Nate Schmidt, who played three seasons with Vegas. “Back-to-backs are tough no matter where you’re coming from. We didn’t come out with our fire in the first period and found ourselves down 4-0.”
Game Notes
- Vegas defenseman Shea Theodore played in his 400th career game and recorded his second season assist on Stephenson’s goal. Theodore has 167 career assists, tied for 31st among defensemen since entering the league in 2015.
- In 12 regular season meetings, the winning team has scored at least four goals 11 times.
UP NEXT
- Winnipeg: Hosts Toronto on Saturday night.
- Vegas: Hosts Colorado on Saturday night.