Was it the best effort this team could've pumped out? Probably not, as one would expect of any game where the Golden Knights only managed two goals against the NHL's worst team. However, was it enough for Vegas? Indeed it was, as those two goals propelled a 2-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks, marking VGK's fourth straight win and continuing their perfect record under John Tortorella.
In the most critical stretch of the season, the Golden Knights have now managed a six-game point streak and a 5-1-2 record over their last eight games, vaulting themselves back into Pacific Division contention. In fact, with Anaheim's 5-0 loss to Nashville and Edmonton's 6-5 overtime loss to Utah, Vegas, against all odds, now sits tied with Edmonton atop the division. Let's take a look at the effort that helped to put Vegas in such an ideal position with just four games to go.
The top six had an off night, but the depth showed up
Bad: this was the first game under Torts in which none of the top-six recorded a point.
Good: It didn't matter. The depth showed up in a big way for Vegas on Tuesday, with Brayden McNabb providing the game-tying goal in the second, and Cole Smith of all guys scoring the game-winner in the third. With Smith's goal specifically, the fourth liner nearly did it all himself, forcing a turnover near the Canucks' blueline and sending the puck to fellow deadline acquisition Nic Dowd, before Dowd fed it back to him for a laser past Nikita Tolopilo:
Cole Smith gives Vegas their first lead of the game 🙌 pic.twitter.com/4uQnrUT3xb
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) April 8, 2026
After going pointless in his first 13 games in gold, that's now Smith's second goal in four games, and his first on a goaltender in a VGK uniform. McNabb's goal also takes him up to five points this year, tying his career-high for the second consecutive season. Also worth commending are Colton Sissons and a returning Brandon Saad; while Sissons didn't find the back of the net, he was absolutely flying out there, and Saad picked up a rare assist on McNabb's equalizer while having an analytically strong game.
A tale of two goalies, and why Carter Hart may or may not have won the net
Here's where I shout out Canucks goalie Nikita Tolopilo, who was an absolute wall, holding Vegas to just two goals despite being under siege for most of the first two periods. By contrast, Carter Hart had an extremely light workload, with Vancouver's 11 shots against marking a Golden Knights franchise record. Despite this, he still did allow a goal, because of course, and it wasn't a particularly difficult shot either, as Jesse Granger points out:
Vancouver strikes first with a wrist shot by Sasson that beat Carter Hart under his blocker.
— Jesse Granger (@JesseGranger_) April 8, 2026
It was a well-placed shot, and Sasson sold the pass, but Hart needs to stop a wrister from that far out with no traffic.
Pretty typical of Vegas goaltending this year. However, this game did mark Hart's third consecutive start and win, with it also being his second consecutive start above a .900 save percentage, and second with one goal against. Combine that with a solid 0.75 goals saved above expected, and Vegas might've finally found a guy to take the reigns come playoffs.
Next up, Vegas visits a spiraling Kraken in Seattle on Thursday. Let's pick up some more divisional points!