Monday offered the perfect proposition for the Vegas Golden Knights. Clinch a playoff spot without doing anything. That's it. The only thing that needed to happen was the Calgary Flames had to lose to the Colorado Avalanche... in regulation.
Everything looked good... for about 40 minutes. The fuzzy slippers and late-night popcorn were out. Surely, one could rely on Nathan MacKinnon and company to win a game in regulation, right?
Somehow, the Avalanche blew a two-goal lead and lost in overtime to Calgary, 3-2. The celebration was put off for another night. It's okay. They'll take care of business against the Edmonton Oilers (now without Connor McDavid!).
On Tuesday, it appeared that it was going to be easy. Nicolas Roy scores on a turnover that Pavel Dorofeyev snatched up. He dishes it to the Quebec native for the goal. 1-0, Vegas. It looked like the Golden Knights were on their way to their seventh playoff berth in eight seasons.
The first period was extremely telling, too. The Golden Knights had a commanding lead in all stats, restricting the Oilers from entering the neutral zone.
Team | Shots | Chances | Slot-driving plays |
|---|---|---|---|
Golden Knights | 10 | 6 | 9 |
Oilers | 4 | 1 | 4 |
Suddenly, Jake Walman scores to even things up. Yep, that Walman who did the "Griddy" after scoring a game-winning goal. That one. Now Edmonton has momentum on their side, playing like they don't need McSuperman. What kind of April Fool's tomfoolery is this?
Surely, this couldn't happen to the best team in the Pacific Division, right? Have they forgotten how to win games and get into the playoffs? This is a veteran group that won a Stanley Cup together, after all.
It didn't matter anyway (for now, at least)
The Vegas Golden Knights had a second period to forget, marred by a quiet transition game and two minutes of pure hell. First, Victor Olofsson gets called for interference on Vasily Podkolzin with 5:31 left. 17 seconds later, Brayden McNabb gets called for hooking against Leon Draisaitl. Draisaitl did Draisaitl things, scoring on the power play. Then Viktor Ardvisson scores on a controversial call by stuffing it past Adin Hill's pad. Not even a Pavel Dorofeyev goal was enough.
While the Golden Knights lost to the Edmonton Oilers, 3-2, that loss didn't matter... For now. The Utah Hockey Club defeated the Calgary Flames, 3-1. That clinched a playoff spot for the Golden Knights, marking the seventh time in eight seasons that they've made the Stanley Cup playoffs. As it stands, there's no knockout blow in the Pacific Division race. Just a playoff berth.
The Flames came off a back-to-back where they stunned the Colorado Avalanche on Monday. But they ran out of juice and fell to the "Hockey Club", 3-1. Las Vegas, be sure to send... honey or hiking boots to your Salt Lake City friends. They deserve it after tonight's big assist.
The Vegas Golden Knights must take care of their backyard now
Losing to the Oilers is never fun. It's as bad as betting your child's entire college fund at the blackjack table... And losing. But when you're committing four penalties after two periods and lack any strength on pucks, that gives your divisional opponents some hope. That was true after the second period, where Edmonton outshot Vegas, 15-14.
By the way, the Los Angeles Kings were leading the Winnipeg Jets, 3-1, after Vegas's game ended. Mistake-prone hockey gives teams like the Kings and Oilers hope. Now, they're thinking they have a shot at winning the Pacific Division. That means Vegas must clamp down and lock in.
No excuses.
No questions asked.
It might've been a night marred by penalties and interesting calls. Adin Hill is still griping about Viktor Arvidsson's controversial goal. However, Vegas got the first monkey off their back. They're in the playoffs and can focus on their backyard. That means shoring up the mistakes and taking care of business in the next two weeks. Otherwise, Tuesday's game could be a preview of what's to come in the playoffs.