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Vegas Golden Knights make it a series with huge win in Game 2 against Stars

By Andrew Steele-Davis

Tomas Nosek #92 of the Vegas Golden Knights celebrates with Chandler Stephenson #20 after scoring a goal on Anton Khudobin #35 of the Dallas Stars during the second period in Game Two of the Western Conference Final.(Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
Tomas Nosek #92 of the Vegas Golden Knights celebrates with Chandler Stephenson #20 after scoring a goal on Anton Khudobin #35 of the Dallas Stars during the second period in Game Two of the Western Conference Final.(Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /
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The Dallas Stars defend against the Vegas Golden Knights in Game Two
The Dallas Stars defend against the Vegas Golden Knights in Game Two of the Western Conference Final. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

Notes & Stats

Here are some key stats from the game:

  • SOG – DAL: 24 – VGK: 32
  • FO% – DAL: 39% – VGK: 61%
  • PP – DAL: 0/2 – VGK: 1/6
  • PIM – DAL: 14 – VGK: 4
  • HITS – DAL: 47 – VGK: 55
  • BLKS – DAL: 10 – VGK: 11
  • GVA – DAL: 14 – VGK: 10

Here was the Official Scoring Summary from Game 2:

  • Paul Stastny (3) – Pacioretty (3), McNabb (3) – 4:53 / 2nd
  • William Karlsson (4) – PPG – Theodore (11), Stastny (4) – 8:24 / 2nd
  • Tomas Nosek (2) – Stephenson (2), Roy (7) – 14:32 / 2nd
Tomas Nosek #92 of the Vegas Golden Knights scores a goal on Anton Khudobin #35 of the Dallas Stars
Tomas Nosek #92 of the Vegas Golden Knights scores a goal on Anton Khudobin #35 of the Dallas Stars during the second period in Game Two of the Western Conference Final. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

Let’s go over some notes from Game 2:

  • The Western Conference Final is now tied at 1-1 after the Vegas Golden Knights won Game 2.
  • Robin Lehner was fantastic again and stopped all 24 shots he faced for his fourth shutout of the postseason. Yes, his fourth.
  • Now, to put that into some context, the NHL record for shutouts in a single postseason is seven, which is currently held by the legendary Martin Brodeur. So, it isn’t out of the realms of possibility that Lehner could tie that record this year which would be something.
  • And, final note on Lehner, the goalie’s shutout streak now stands at 131:44, which is just 12:20 short of a franchise record.
  • Paul Stastny had a big night with a two-point game, getting Vegas on the board with his 3rd goal of the postseason before recording a secondary assist on William Karlsson’s power play goal.
  • Speaking of Karlsson, the center finally got the Golden Knights off the mark on the power play, recording his fourth goal of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
  • Shea Theodore played a huge role in Karlsson’s goal, providing the primary helper for his 11th assist of the postseason. Theodore leads the Golden Knights in Playoffs points this year with 17 (6 G, 11 A) in 17 games.
  • Nicolas Roy started 2019-20 as a rookie destined for the AHL but he’s emerged as a real key piece for the Golden Knights, and he’s played a big role inside The Bubble. Roy picked up a secondary assist on Tomas Nosek’s goal, which was his 8th point of the postseason (1 G, 7 A).
  • Tomas Nosek’s goal was a thing of pure beauty. It started in their own zone when they made a clean transition, before Chandler Stephenson and Tomas Nosek played a slick game of tic-tac-toe, resulting in Nosek recording his 2nd goal of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
  • This was a big win for the Golden Knights and one they needed. Not only did they make it a series, but they addressed a few worries. After going four periods without scoring in this series and having laid a goose egg twice in three games, the offense needed to step up and they delivered.
  • Now, granted, this wasn’t a perfect game from Vegas and there is plenty of room for improvement, but they needed this one.
  • One thing we have learned after two games in the Western Conference Final is that there is no room for error. While that should be the case at this stage of the postseason, the Stars clearly know how to handle and stifle the Golden Knights so Vegas can’t afford any more off nights.
  • Game 3 will be huge in this series in my opinion. We’ve seen how dangerous the Knights are once they get on a roll, but if the Stars get ahead then they have the ability to really tighten things up, use their suffocating forecheck and make life impossible for Vegas.
  • How about this for a stat; with their win in Game 2 the Vegas Golden Knights have more playoff wins than any team in hockey since entering the NHL in 2017-18.
  • And some said that hockey wouldn’t work in Sin City.
  • Vegas haven’t been good in the faceoff circle inside The Bubble, but they came out on top in Game 2 with a dominating 61% win percentage.
  • However, their power play continues to struggle after going 1/6 in Game 2, with the Golden Knights now ranked 11th on the man advantage in the NHL (18.5).
  • This is shaping up to be a physical series and that was reflected in hits with the Golden Knights outhitting the Stars 55-47.
  • Their penalty kill did rise to the occasion, however, killing off two Dallas power plays and Vegas’ PK unit is currently ranked 5th in the NHL (88.7).
  • Vegas also blocked more shots than Dallas (11-10) and gave up less Giveaways (10-14).
  • Nate Schmidt led all Vegas Golden Knights skaters with a whopping 26:01 of total ice time in Game 2.
  • The Official Three Stars of the Game were: 1: Paul Stastny 2. Robin Lehner 3. Tomas Nosek.

Let’s look at our Three Stars of the Game…

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