Vegas Golden Knights lose in overtime, keep point streak going
They were finally beaten but the Vegas Golden Knights extended their point streak to five games after losing to the New York Islanders in overtime on Thursday.
In what was their first visit in franchise history to the Nassau Coliseum, the Vegas Golden Knights went the distance before succumbing to the Isles, although they still claimed five points from a possible six on this three-game road trip which is a fantastic return.
Although Marc-Andre Fleury was back with the team after returning from personal leave, Malcolm Subban made his sixth straight start and made 28 stops from 31 shots.
Cal Clutterbuck got the Islanders on the board first in the second period after a scoreless first, but Alex Tuch made it a tied game heading into the final third with his seventh point in four games.
Brock Nelson gave the Isles the lead again early in the third, although Jonathan Marchessault‘s fourth goal in two games took the contest to overtime.
And, despite their best efforts, Vegas couldn’t land the final blow and they were denied the win when Ryan Pulock wristed the winning goal past Subban after the Knights couldn’t clear the zone.
Let’s delve into the game by breaking it down period-by-period…
The Game
First Period – Both teams like to play a physical brand of hockey and that was on display from the first drop of the puck as Deryk Engelland laid a crushing hit on Matt Martin.
But the Islanders were the team playing with a real edge and they peppered Malcolm Subban with a flurry of efforts, outshooting the Knights 13-8.
Second Period – And the Isles carried that momentum into the middle frame and they got on the board first at 4:26.
Cal Clutterbuck carried the puck into the offensive zone on an odd-man rush, before absolutely ripping the puck past Malcolm Subban.
New York was completely dominant in all areas and they were showing why they have been one of the best teams in the NHL so far this year.
The Knights were getting their chances too, however, and they came close when Reilly Smith had a one-timer stopped by Semyon Varlamov, while Subban had to make a couple of big stops himself.
And that laid the platform for Vegas to finally get on the board as, at 15:27, Alex Tuch continued his recent hot streak by getting the puck in the neutral zone, charging into the offensive zone and then firing a shot from within the circle over the blocker of Varlamov.
Vegas outshot New York 13-12 in the second period.
Third Period – It didn’t take long for the Islanders to restore their lead, however, as Anthony Beauvillier won the puck battle behind the net before feeding Brock Nelson who sniped a shot past Subban.
Vegas would tie the game at 15:28, though, with Nic Hague fanning on a shot but Jonathan Marchessault was right there to hammer home the puck for his fourth goal in his last two outings.
Overtime – Nate Schmidt did an outstanding job of putting the shackles on Mathew Barzal for a large chunk of overtime, but the Islanders were put in the driving seat when Jonathan Marchessault took a tripping penalty.
And, with the man advantage, the New York Islanders landed the knockout blow as Ryan Pulock beat Malcolm Subban with an unstoppable wrister.
However, the Vegas Golden Knights collected five points from a possible six on a three-game road trip on the east coast, and they are starting to find their game.
Let’s go over some notes and stats from the game…
Notes & Stats from the game
This was the Vegas Golden Knights Lineup against the New Jersey Devils…
Marchessault-Karlsson-Smith
Pacioretty-Stastny-Stone
Carrier-Glass-Tuch
Nosek-Stephenson-Reaves
McNabb-Schmidt
Hague-Theodore
Merrill-Engelland
Subban
These were the scratches for the Golden Knights:
Here are some key stats from the game:
- SOG – VGK: 33 – NYI: 31
- FO% – VGK: 43% – NYI: 57%
- PP – VGK: 0/1 – NYI: 1/2
- PIM – VGK: 4 – NYI: 2
- HITS – VGK: 13 – NYI: 39
- BLKS – VGK: 14 – NYI: 18
- GVA – VGK: 23 – NYI: 31
And here is the Official Scoring Summary from the game:
- Cal Clutterbuck (3) – Unassisted – 4:26 / 2nd
- Alex Tuch (5) – Glass (7), Merrill (3) – 15:27 /2nd
- Brock Nelson (9) – Beauvillier (9), Mayfield (4) – 3:56 / 3rd
- Jonathan Marchessault (9) – Hague (5), Smith (11) – 15:28 / 3rd
- Ryan Pulock (4) – PPG – Lee (7), Bailey (12) – 3:20 / OT
Let’s go over some notes from the game:
- The Vegas Golden Knights are now 15-11-5 after losing to the New York Islanders in overtime.
- After last night, the Golden Knights finished this three-game road trip on the east coast 2-0-1 and took five points from a possible six, which isn’t a bad return at all.
- In truth, the Golden Knights were lucky to get to overtime given that they were dominated by the Islanders, but it is a clear hallmark of a good team to grind out at least a point.
- Malcolm Subban made his sixth straight start and he was impressive again against the Islanders, stopping 28 of 31 shots with a .903 Save Percentage.
- Credit where credit is due. I’ve been very vocal in my doubts over Subban’s future with this franchise, but he has really stepped up to the plate in Marc-Andre Fleury’s absence.
- And, on that note, it was brilliant to see Fleury back with the team last night and I wouldn’t be surprised if he gets the start against the New York Islanders on Sunday.
- Final note on the goalies; Subban is now 4-4-3 this season with a 2.86 Goals Against Average and a .909 Save Percentage.
- Alex Tuch is on an absolute tear right now and the forward recorded his seventh point (four goals, three assists) in four games with a goal against the Islanders.
- Cody Glass has 11 points (four goals, seven assists) after picking up an assist on Tuch’s goal, while Jon Merrill registered his third helper of the year on Tuch’s goal.
- Jonathan Marchessault now has four goals in two games after scoring in the third period against New York, and he’s now got nine points and 13 assists for 22 points in 31 games this year.
- Rookie defenseman Nic Hague has really settled into his role now, and he picked up his fifth assist of the season on Marchessault’s goal.
- Reilly Smith recorded assist No.11 on Marchessault’s goal, and Smith has 23 points (12 goals, 11 assists) on the year.
- Vegas ended up outshooting the Islanders 33-31 despite being dominated for most of the game, although they were outdone in other categories.
- They were 43% in the faceoff circle, they were massively outhit 39-13 by the physical Islanders and they also had less blocked shots than New York (14-18).
- However, Vegas did have less giveaways (23) than the Islanders, who coughed up 31 Giveaways.
- Vegas went 0-for-1 on the power play and they are now ranked 7th on the man advantage (22.9).
- They also went 1-for-2 on the penalty kill after allowing a power play goal in overtime, and the Knights are ranked 4th on the PK in the league (85.1).
- Shea Theodore led all Vegas Golden Knights skaters in total ice time, logging a monster total of 25:06 minutes.
My Three Stars of the game
- Malcolm Subban has been brilliant in Marc-Andre Fleury’s absence and he stood on his head again against the New York Islanders. He gave his team the best possible chance to succeed, stopping 28 of 31 shots.
- Alex Tuch now has seven points (four goals, three assists) in his last three outings, and he’s really enjoying his resurgence right now. He potted a brilliant goal against the Islanders and was a +1 in 13:07 minutes of ice time.
- Jonathan Marchessault recorded his fourth goal in two games after picking up the puck following Nic Hague’s fanned shot, sending a wrister past Semyon Varlamov to tie the game and send it to overtime. He’s really starting to explode offensively and that is only good news for the Vegas Golden Knights.
Official Three Stars
- Ryan Pulock
- Brock Nelson
- Cal Clutterbuck
Next. Knights should trade for Sami Vatanen. dark
Looking Ahead
The Vegas Golden Knights now return home to Las Vegas and they are back in action at T-Mobile Center against the New York Rangers on Sunday, a team they beat earlier in the week.
They will then host the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday before finishing the week with a back-to-back on the road against the St. Louis Blues and Dallas Stars respectively.