The Vegas Golden Knights maintained their composure after a brutal hit on their captain, securing a 3-0 series lead in the Western Conference Final and moving within one win of the Stanley Cup Final.
Ivan Barbashev scored a power-play goal after Dallas Stars captain Jamie Benn was ejected for hitting Mark Stone early in the game. This was the second of three goals Vegas scored in the first 7 1/2 minutes, leading to an early exit for Dallas goalie Jake Oettinger as the Golden Knights triumphed 4-0 in Game 3 on Tuesday night.
“You keep your composure,” said Alex Pietrangelo, who scored midway through the second period.
After a collision near the blue line, Benn lunged at Stone, who was on the ice, making contact near Stone’s neck with his stick.
“We’re upset when we see that, he’s our captain,” coach Bruce Cassidy said. “But at the end of the day, they make a call that gives us a chance to pay them for the penalty. And we did it with one goal anyway, so we’ve doubled our lead. Do it the right way. That’s been our mindset all along.”
While Oettinger had the shortest start of his career, Vegas goalie Adin Hill stopped 34 shots for his first career postseason shutout. Hill became the second Knights goaltender with a five-game winning streak this postseason, following Laurent Brossoit before his injury.
After four consecutive comeback victories in these playoffs, including two overtime wins at home to start the best-of-seven series, the Golden Knights were in control throughout this game.
Game 4 is Thursday night, and Vegas has the chance to reach its second Stanley Cup Final in six seasons.
The Golden Knights were Western Conference champions during their inaugural 2017-18 season, ultimately losing the Cup Final to the Washington Capitals. After missing the playoffs last season and parting ways with coach Pete DeBoer, who then joined the Stars, Vegas is poised to return to the championship round.
Jonathan Marchessault scored just 71 seconds into the game, only 42 seconds before Benn was given a game misconduct for a five-minute major cross-checking penalty.
“Let’s put it this way: he made a mistake. He feels really bad about it. I don’t think anyone in the building feels worse than he does about it,” DeBoer said. “I’m not going to pile on. He’s been a leader here for his entire career and leads every day on and off the ice. … Fortunately, Mark Stone’s OK, and we’ve got to live with the consequences.”
After a wrister that Hill initially stopped, Benn’s early exit left Dallas without their captain for the remainder of the game. Benn could also face an NHL suspension after the league reviews the play.
Barbashev, who later added two assists, scored one of only three shots Vegas had during the five-minute penalty. His 30-foot wrister for a 2-0 lead came after a blocked short-handed break by Ty Dellandrea and a pass from Nicolas Roy.
“What goes unnoticed in there is the save by Adin Hill on the shorthand 2-on-1 … and we come down and score,” Cassidy said. “That 15 seconds of hockey greatly impacts the game.”
Oettinger was replaced by Scott Wedgewood after William Carrier’s backhander made it 3-0 with 12:50 left in the first period.
Oettinger, 24, has now lost three starts in a row and four of five overall, with the lone win coming in Game 7 of the Western semifinals against Seattle.
Wedgewood stopped 10 of 11 shots, with Pietrangelo’s goal coming just as a power play ended.
Stars center Max Domi received a game misconduct with 21 seconds left in the second period for cross-checking Nicolas Hague and subsequently throwing punches.
“I think you guys know exactly what was being discussed,” Hague said of the incident. “There’s no reason for me to get involved in anything. It is what it is, and we got a big win.”
Fans threw water bottles, food, and other items on the ice in response to the ensuing penalty, causing officials to send both teams to their locker rooms early for the second intermission. Vegas was up 4-0.
The remaining 21 seconds were played after the intermission before the third period began.
“It was a little weird,” Hill said. “I’ve never seen so much stuff on the ice, that’s for sure.”
Game Notes
Stars forward Evgenii Dadonov left the game with a lower-body injury in the first period and did not return. This was the first Western Conference Final game in Dallas since May 19, 2008, when the Stars lost to Detroit in Game 6.
