Golden Knights lose 5-4 to Flames in shootout but lock up No. 2 seed in West

The Vegas Golden Knights (49-22-10) earned a point in a 5-4 shootout loss to the Calgary Flames Tuesday night at Scotiabank Saddledome. Vegas led 3-1 in the third period but gave up three goals in the final frame and went on to lose in a shootout.

The game was relatively inconsequential for the Golden Knights, who had already clinched the Pacific Division Saturday against Nashville. However, the point helped Vegas secure the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference, which will give the Golden Knights home-ice advantage over every team in the West except Winnipeg.

Tuesday’s slate of games solidified the Western Conference matchups, setting up a first-round showdown between Vegas and the Minnesota Wild.

In the first half of a season-closing back-to-back, Vegas was shorthanded once again, with Jack Eichel, Mark Stone, Alex Pietrangelo and Noah Hanifin out of the lineup. Adin Hill did not dress, as Akira Schmid served as backup for the returning Ilya Samsonov.

The Flames entered the game in do-or-die mode, but the Wild’s game-tying goal to force overtime in their game against Anaheim put an end to Calgary’s playoff hopes.

Game No. 81 in Vegas’ campaign saw both teams record a three-goal period, with the Golden Knights doing so in the opening 20 minutes to take a 3-1 lead into the first intermission.

Pavel Dorofeyev opened the scoring when his shot deflected off Flames defenseman MacKenzie Weegar in front. It was Dorofeyev’s team-leading 34th goal of the season and was a full-line goal, with both Tomas Hertl and Brandon Saad tallying assists on the play.

Calgary got the first power play of the game less than five minutes later, and the home team made quick use of the opportunity, as Morgan Frost scored just six seconds into the man-advantage. Samsonov, who was back between the pipes for the first time since March 23, misplayed the shot, making it a 1-1 game.

But Nicolas Roy put Vegas back on top at 14:52 with his 15th goal of the year, tying a career high he set in 2021-22. It was a filthy move for Roy on the breakaway after a nice setup from Ivan Barbashev.

The Hertl line struck for the second time with just 24 seconds left in the frame, as Hertl scored his first goal since returning to the lineup after suffering an injury March 23 against Tampa Bay. It was a strong forecheck shift by the line, with Saad finding Hertl on the weak side for his 32nd of the year.

Neither team scored in the second period, with Vegas leading 13-8 in shots.

Having been eliminated from playoff contention during the second intermission, the Flames came out in the third with a bang, beating Samsonov twice in the first 64 seconds of the frame.

The Flames went on to score their third unanswered goal to take a 4-3 lead at 11:01.

However, Saad scored just 11 seconds later to halt Calgary’s momentum and reset the score. Calgary challenged for goaltender interference, but there was nothing questionable on the play. Vegas’ ensuing power play was unsuccessful, though.

Neither team was able to pot the go-ahead goal, setting up extra time.

The Golden Knights had great looks in overtime, with Bruce Cassidy electing to play three forwards during the 3-on-3 action. However, goaltender Dustin Wolf stopped all three Vegas shots, sending the game to a shootout. Wolf went on to deny Victor Olofsson, Dorofeyev and Shea Theodore. Frost beat Samsonov for the game-winner in the third round.

The Golden Knights didn’t have a lot to play for, but they still managed to take care of business and secure home-ice advantage through at least the first two rounds of the playoffs.

The most significant takeaway was the lack of injuries, which is vital for the Golden Knights.

But the team played pretty well, all things considered.

The Golden Knights got solid performances from three lines, with the Hertl line seemingly returning to form with a three-goal night, the William Karlsson line continuing to fire on all cylinders with Olofsson back in the mix, and the new-look fourth line of Barbashev, Roy and Keegan Kolesar impressing throughout. The Roy line scored a goal and led 15-9 in Corsi and 7-4 in scoring chances.

On the flip side, though it was a good opportunity for Samsonov to get a game in before the playoffs, he was shaky all night, giving up four goals on 28 shots for an .857 save percentage.

Also, the penalty kill and power play both went 0-for-2. The power play is more of a concern, though, as it has gone 1-for-15 over the last eight games. That being said, the Golden Knights have not had the core of the top unit intact over the last three-plus weeks, with Hertl, Eichel and Stone all missing time. The Golden Knights will need the power play in the playoffs, but it very well could be a personnel issue at this point.

The fact that Vegas scored three in the first and earned a point against a team desperate for a win is a decent outcome for a meaningless game.

“I thought we played really well, to be honest,” Cassidy said. “I’m sitting here, I can’t believe we lost. Usually after a game, the coach is going through a bunch of different things. Obviously, the start of the third wasn’t great, but we weren’t terrible. Their pucks had eyes. I thought their goaltender was excellent. We created lots of offense, different guys in the lineup. So all in all, I thought it was a good effort, we just came out on the wrong side of it.”

The Golden Knights will wrap up the regular season tomorrow night in Vancouver before the real games begin.