Jack Eichel scored a goal and added an assist to lead the Vegas Golden Knights to a 5-1 victory over the Minnesota Wild on Thursday night, capitalizing on a mid-game collapse by the Wild.
Nicolas Roy, Alex Pietrangelo, Paul Cotter, and Reilly Smith also scored for Vegas, who overwhelmed former Golden Knights goalie Marc-Andre Fleury. Fleury, left exposed by his defense, visibly lost his temper after conceding Eichel’s goal—the fourth Vegas scored in the second period.
Kirill Kaprizov netted a power-play goal for Minnesota, the lone scorer against Vegas goalie Logan Thompson, who made 23 saves before a non-contact injury in the third period forced him off the ice with help from teammates.
Prior to Thompson’s injury, the Golden Knights were doing well. They emerged from a nine-day break with a 5-1 win over Nashville on Tuesday, and their fathers joined them on the road trip for added support.
“They bring a lot of energy. Obviously, we want to play good for them,” Smith said. “They’ve supported us through our entire hockey career.”
Jonathan Marchessault, who recorded two assists, set up Eichel for a goal with a pass as he raced past Minnesota’s Marcus Foligno. Eichel ended a nine-game goal drought by snapping a shot over Fleury’s shoulder, making it 5-1 with 6:37 left in the second period.
Frustrated, Fleury smashed his stick against the post and threw it past mid-ice after conceding three goals in a span of 2:26, shortly after Kaprizov’s team-leading 29th goal had energized the crowd.
Filip Gustavsson replaced Fleury for the third period after Fleury stopped 18 shots. Gustavsson, who played in the 4-1 loss to Dallas the night before, has better stats than Fleury this season.
“There’s no blame for Marc-Andre Fleury, and his teammates said that in between the second and third period,” coach Dean Evason said. “Everybody knows what happened.”
One of the goals Fleury allowed was a penalty shot by Smith after Alex Goligoski was called for slashing. Smith’s shot slipped between Fleury’s pads after deflecting off his stick.
“When you’re struggling to score, you can’t give them free goals,” Goligoski said.
Minnesota, playing their first home game in 12 days, began a critical seven-game homestand against tough competition. With three straight losses since their break, they’re now tied with Calgary for the second wild-card spot in a precarious playoff position.
Discipline has been an issue for the Wild, compounded by the absence of defenseman Jonas Brodin (lower-body injury) for a second straight game. The Wild lost 3-2 at Arizona on Monday and 4-1 at Dallas on Wednesday, prompting boos from their home crowd as the game ended.
Vegas has thrived since their break despite the recent loss of key forward Mark Stone to a back injury.
“This is the time good teams, I think, don’t let points slip away,” coach Bruce Cassidy said.
FINGERS CROSSED
Thompson, who was replaced by Adin Hill, was “moving around” in the dressing room afterward, Cassidy said. He will undergo an MRI on Friday morning.
“We’ll have a much better idea, and hopefully we get good news,” Cassidy said.
SUCCESSFUL DADS’ TRIP
The Golden Knights are 7-0-1 on their annual dads’ trip since the tradition began in 2017. The Pacific Division-leading Golden Knights were 0-2-2 in their last four games before their break.
“It seems like they had a lot of fun, and when they come and help us win two games, especially the way we did it, I don’t see a mothers’ trip coming in anytime soon,” Smith said.
UP NEXT
- Golden Knights: Host Anaheim on Sunday, their first home game in 22 days.
- Wild: Host New Jersey on Saturday night.
