VGK’s Reilly Smith Scores OT Game-Winner As Knights Win, 4-3, Over Chicago Thursday To Go Up 2-0 In Series
By Alan Snel of LVSportsBiz.com
Reilly Smith sometimes gets overlooked on a team with many leaders, names and popular players. Not Thursday.
The Golden Knights forward scored the overtime game-winner Thursday and led the VGK to a 4-3 OT win over the Chicago Blackhawks, giving the Knights a 2-0 game lead in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Coach Pete DeBoer mentioned the team’s ability to take it to the next level to close out games.
VGK forward Paul Stastny opened the scoring off a nifty feed from linemate Jonathan Marchessault in period one. And then Tomas Nosek — back in the line on the fourth line — snapped a wrister for the VGK 2-0 lead after period one.
Stastny responded to an LVSportsBiz.com question about what it’s like to play with Smith as a linemate. Here’s his complete response:
Before he left the bench with an apparent injury, Nosek was interviewed after period one. “It’s a fast game. Little different from round robin,” Nosek said in between period one and two.
In period two, Blackhawks 19-year-old rookie Kirby Dach backhanded a rebound into an open net to slice the Knights lead in half to 2-1. Lehner didn’t have a chance after he made the initial save.
Then Dominik Kubalík snapped a wrist shot just inside the post on a power play to knot the score at two apiece midway through the middle period.
Knights forward Mark Stone found a puck sitting right at his skates and flipped the disc into an open net late in the period to give the VGK a 3-2 lead.
But Chicago converted on a Dylan Strome goal after some nifty puck movement and the score was locked at three after two periods. Patrick Kane, a Blackhawks 31-year-old forward, assisted on all three Chicago goals after two periods.
The Golden Knights have dominated the third period during the Pandemic Playoffs, outscoring foes, 10-1.
But the third stanza was scoreless — and off to overtime the Knights and Blackhawks went. Smith scored the winner and goalie Robin Lehner remains unbeaten at 7-0 for the Golden Knights.
The Knights and Blackhawks battle in games 3 and 4 Saturday and Sunday in the Edmonton host city Bubble at Rogers place.
Owner Bill Foley, on Knights TV programming between periods one and two, said players helping Las Vegas after the Oct. 1, 2017 mass shooting on the Strip set the tone for the NHL franchise to give to the local market.
The Knights held a charity night fundraiser Thursday for the VGK Foundation, raising well over $265,000 at last look.
It’s great to see national anthem singer Carnell “Golden Pipes” Johnson singing the anthem before the VGK games. LVSportsBiz.com did a story on Johnson in season one, urging the Knights to use Johnson as their postseason anthem singer.
And our postgame chat with Golden Pipes:
Lehner had quite a few skates to pick from after the blade came off his skate not once but twice in Game 1. A look online showed these goalie skates to choose from among others.
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