Vegas Golden Knights: Erik Haula Wins Game Two In Double Overtime

It may have taken two overtimes, but the Vegas Golden Knights take a 2-0 series lead.

The Vegas Golden Knights walked into game two with a 1-0 series lead against the Los Angeles Kings. After a physical battle in game one, I expect to see even more of that as the series wears on. Tight defense and taking care of the puck will be the story in this series.

William Carrier drew back into the lineup as there was some question if he was actually going to play. Golden Knights Head Coach Gerard Gallant made no changes to his lines on Friday night. However, the Kings made a couple of adjustments due to the suspension of Drew Doughty.

Los Angeles dressed Kevin Gravel in favor of the suspended number one defenseman. Also, Alex Iaffalo was scratched after not participating in LA’s morning skate. Instead, Michael Amadio got the call for his first bit of playoff action. Of course, Marc-Andre Fleury and Jonathan Quick got the calls from their respective clubs.

The game didn’t start off with the same physical pace of game one, but the crowd was definitely into it. In fact, the crowd was so loud; they broke the time clock after five seconds. Multiple delays occurred in the first five minutes of the game, and it may have disturbed some flow in the game.

Vegas went on the power play when Kyle Clifford backed into Fleury causing goaltender interference. After first glance, it looked like Jon Merrill pushed Clifford into Fleury, but that wasn’t the case. The Golden Knights had sustained pressure in the last half of the man advantage before finally cashing in on the first goal of the game.

Jonathan Marchessault’s point shot deflected off the end boards to rookie forward Alex Tuch who tucked it past a sprawled Jonathan Quick. Tuch’s first goal of the playoffs came at a crucial time just as the power play was about to expire.  As I said in my predictions article I posted on Wednesday, the Syracuse, New York native may play a big role in the series.

Marchessault took a slashing call at the end of the first period, but the Golden Knights killed it off with ease. The Golden Knights controlled most of the first period outshooting the Kings 12-5.  The middle frame is when things started to open up.

After Deryk Engelland took a shot that Quick stopped, Carrier’s rebound chance glanced the post.  Golden Knights had a few good chances on a power play, but the LA defense held steady and kept the game tied. The tide switched in the Kings favor as Brayden McNabb took a bad tripping penalty in the offensive zone.

After a solid minute on the penalty kill, Los Angeles started gaining traction. Paul LaDue took a shot from the point that beat a blinded Marc-Andre Fleury. His first goal of the playoffs tied the game at one. But the main frustration is having a defenseman in the box due to an offensive zone penalty, that can’t happen, and the Kings made them pay.

The second period ended with the game knotted at one. Total shots on goal were 26-12 in favor of the Golden Knights. Through two periods of play, the Golden Knights had a ton of offensive zone pressure in the second, but they needed to find a way to capitalize on their scoring chances in the third period.

The final 20 minutes were a struggle for the Golden Knights. The Kings finally hit their stride in the third period and got most of the offensive zone pressure. Fleury came up huge stopping eight Kings shots in the last frame.

The Golden Knights did have many anxious moments in the third, but they also couldn’t stop Quick. And just like that, regulation time faded away, and the Vegas Golden Knights went to their first continuous sudden death overtime in franchise history.  The shot total at the end of three periods was 35-20 in favor of the NHL’s newest franchise.

Overtime brought many heart-stopping moments. Tuch’s setup to James Neal in the slot. Dustin Brown’s swivel backhand shot that was kicked away by Fleury. Tomas Nosek with a wide open look at Quick but the elite goaltender made a critical stop. Anze Kopitar with a glittering opportunity cutting across the slot all alone but just missing the net. Reilly Smith with a clear look on an odd-man rush with William Karlsson.

The Golden Knights even went on the penalty kill as Pierre-Edouard Bellemare cleared the puck from his own zone into the crowd for a delay of game call. Despite many good looks by LA, the Golden Knights stood tall on the PK. After 80 minutes of play, the Golden Knights and Los Angeles Kings went into double overtime. Through four periods of the game, the  Golden Knights led in shots 47-27, but the Kings have stayed with them on the scoreboard.

The Golden Knights ended up going on the power play in double overtime, but they still couldn’t find a way to put one past Quick. All of a sudden, you could see the Kings get insanely tired and dragging their legs. Then, the Golden Knights took advantage of an opportunity, and they struck gold.

Shea Theodore made a key block on a Kyle Clifford shot that deflected to Neal who entered the offensive zone with ease. He fed Erik Haula coming down the wing, and Haula made no mistake going five-hole on Quick. The goal sent T-Mobile Arena in an absolute frenzy as the Golden Knights bench piled into the celebration to embrace Haula.

But let’s take a moment and talk about the goalies in this one. Marc-Andre Fleury stood tall and earned the victory stopping 29 out of 30 shots. But if it weren’t for Quick, the Golden Knights would’ve won this game in regulation. Quick had an outstanding performance giving up two goals on 56 shots. Lots of those were high-quality scoring chances. Props to both goaltenders in this high-pressure situation.

The longest game in the history of an expansion team and it was also the longest game in Kings history. Vegas will take a 2-0 series lead heading into Sunday nights game at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. It’ll be interesting to see how both teams react in game three after a long double-overtime affair.

Next: Vegas Golden Knights: Storylines Ahead Of Game Two VS Kings

All in all, the Vegas Golden Knights and Los Angeles Kings played a great hockey game. Game three will bring the best out of the Kings as they really can’t afford to go down 3-0 in the series. Catch Sunday’s puck drop on AT&T Sportsnet and NBCSN at 7:30 PM PT.