The Vegas Golden Knights had every chance to even their second-round series against the Edmonton Oilers but came up short in a 5-4 overtime loss in Game 2 Thursday night at T-Mobile Arena.
Vegas overcame multiple two-goal deficits and masterfully killed off a five-minute major in overtime, but it wasn’t enough to neutralize the Oilers, who secured their sixth straight comeback win this postseason. The gut-wrenching finish for the Golden Knights leaves them in a 2-0 hole in the best-of-seven series.
There were a few lineup changes ahead of Game 2, as Bruce Cassidy split up Jack Eichel and William Karlsson, and Alex Pietrangelo returned to the lineup after missing Game 1 due to illness.
The start of the game was reminiscent of Game 1 in that the Golden Knights got two early power plays and scored on one of them. The first man-advantage was a mess, but Vegas took full advantage of the second one, as Victor Olofsson potted his first career playoff goal. A strong passing play by Eichel and Mark Stone set up Olofsson for the backdoor one-timer, which beat Calvin Pickard 8:42 into the contest.
It was Eichel’s 40th career playoff point in just 37 games (he now has 42), making him the fourth-fastest American-born player to reach that milestone behind only Brian Leetch (32), Kevin Stevens (33) and Jake Guentzel (34).
At one point, the Golden Knights held the Oilers without a shot for more than 10 minutes in the second period. But Edmonton still managed to turn the tide in the middle frame for the second game in a row.
Pickard made a number of important saves, including one on a backdoor bid by Olofsson on the power play and another on a Tanner Pearson breakaway. Vegas also wasted several chances, like when Tomas Hertl missed the net on a great look from the slot.
The Oilers, meanwhile, made the most of their opportunities, punishing Vegas with two goals in the span of just 3:47 and three in 5:46.
First, Jake Walman — who had a fantastic game — blasted one past Adin Hill for his first career playoff goal. The shot deflected off Brayden McNabb on its way into the net.
Less than four minutes later, Vasily Podkolzin beat Hill cleanly from the slot.
It was a tough goal for Hill to surrender, and Podkolzin’s first career postseason tally gave the Oilers the 2-1 lead with 4:42 remaining in the second.
Darnell Nurse extended that lead less than two minutes later on a 4-on-4 opportunity after Evander Kane skated right through the crease, interfering with Hill. Zach Whitecloud got the matching minor in defense of his netminder, and the Oilers made the home team pay once again with their third goal in under six minutes.
But the Golden Knights answered with a massive goal 53 seconds later to cut the deficit in half. Karlsson tipped Eichel’s shot to make it a 3-2 game with 1:50 on the clock.
It was a fantastic play by Eichel to buy time and get the puck to the net for a much-needed response. Vegas had a few more solid chances before the horn sounded on the second period, leaving the Golden Knights with a one-goal deficit to overcome in the final frame.
Vegas controlled play in the second, leading 20-8 in scoring chances and 11-1 in high-danger chances while earning a 74.12 percent expected goal share. But in the end, the Oilers led 11-10 in shots and, significantly, 3-1 in goals.
Kane added another at 1:52 of the third period to reestablish the two-goal edge. Hill got a piece of the shot, but the puck took an odd bounce on its way over his pad and into the cage.
The Golden Knights got a power play shortly thereafter with the game on the line.
Once again, the Golden Knights had the answer.
This time, Eichel hit Olofsson directly for his second of the night, making it a 4-3 game at 4:32. Cassidy put Karlsson on the ice instead of Hertl for the faceoff, which Vegas won.
The Oilers got their second power play of the game 2:29 later, but the shorthanded Golden Knights held the Oilers to one shot as Vegas’ penalty kill improved to 2-for-2 on the night.
The Golden Knights built on that momentum and continued to push.
Pietrangelo tied the game at 11:58 on a shot from the point. Olofsson picked up his third point of the game with the secondary assist on Pietrangelo’s second of the playoffs. Shortly before the goal, Hertl fell on Pickard’s leg after being shoved by Oilers defenseman Brett Kulak, but Pickard remained in the crease as Vegas knotted things up.
Hill came through with his biggest save of regulation late in the third when Edmonton threatened to take back the lead.
Vegas finished the period with several great chances, but Brett Howden and Eichel were unable to make it happen before the end of regulation, sending the Golden Knights and Oilers to a potentially series-altering overtime.
It was all Golden Knights early in extra time, but Pickard came through with several monumental saves, getting some help from Nurse to prevent Olofsson from completing the hat trick.
Though the Golden Knights had all the momentum, Nicolas Roy made an inexplicable decision to cross-check Trent Frederic in the face, leading to a five-minute major and game misconduct.
Miraculously, Vegas took care of the major. It was a sensational effort by everyone on the penalty kill, particularly by Hill, who was outstanding. He got a little help from the crossbar after a brutal turnover by Pietrangelo almost ended the game in the final seconds of the power play.
The Golden Knights pulled off the impossible with arguably the greatest penalty kill in Golden Knights history. But it wouldn’t prove to be enough.
With 4:40 remaining in overtime, Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl — both of whom had been held off the scoresheet all night — finally made their presence felt. After Eichel got caught flat-footed against a surging McDavid, the Oilers’ superstars converted on a 2-on-1, with Draisaitl’s fifth of the postseason clinching it for the road team.
The goal came shortly after Viktor Arvidsson tripped McNabb, sending him face- and shoulder-first into the boards. McNabb headed straight to the locker room as a result of the dangerous play, which wasn’t penalized. The Oilers ended the game on the next shift.
Cassidy said after the game that the referee “blew it. He missed the call. I don’t know what else to say. It’s a can-opener trip, it’s a dangerous play, it’s all those things. But it didn’t get called, so you gotta keep playing. … At the end of the day, that’s the task in front of you when those calls happen or don’t happen, and [Edmonton] made a play and capitalized on it. It stings to lose that way.”
The captain had a similar reaction.
“Pretty clear it’s a penalty,” Stone said. “His stick’s between McNabb’s legs. He sends him head-first into the boards. Pretty clear-cut penalty in my eyes. … But that’s hockey. You don’t always get the calls.”
Was it a missed call? Yes. But this was a game the Golden Knights could have and should have won. This was a game they needed to win. They had countless chances to take care of business and get the job done.
They didn’t.
That’s not to say they didn’t do a lot of things well and weren’t drastically better than they had been in Game 1. But they failed to capitalize on grade-A opportunities and put the game away.
The fact that they killed the major and still came up empty will be a tough pill to swallow. But with Edmonton on the brink of taking a 3-0 stranglehold on this series, the Golden Knights will have to turn the page if they want to save their season.
Their dominance on special teams will need to continue. In Game 2, Vegas delivered a special-teams performance for the ages, going 2-for-4 on the power play and 3-for-3 on the penalty kill, including a full five-minute major in sudden-death overtime against one of the most talented and lethal power plays in the league.
Pickard may be 6-0 this postseason, but he is beatable, and the Golden Knights proved that in Game 2. In Edmonton, it will be even more imperative for the Golden Knights to bury their chances. That’s non-negotiable.
Hill wasn’t at his best throughout the game but was stellar in overtime, making eight saves on a gutsy penalty kill to help Vegas survive. The Golden Knights will need him to summon his 2023 self for Vegas to have a chance of turning things around in Alberta on Saturday.
Needless to say, Game 3 is a do-or-die situation.
Olofsson, who had an excellent game, didn’t mince words: “This is far from over.”
