Even Faster This Time: VGK’s Stephenson Scores 72 Seconds Into OT To Beat Dallas, 3-2, In WCF Game 2 Before 18,358 In Vegas Sunday
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Story by Alan Snel Photos by Hugh Byrne
After deflating Dallas in OT with a goal a mere 95 seconds into the extra session in Game 1 Friday, the Vegas Golden Knights one-upped that overtime win Sunday with an OT goal only 72 seconds into extra time for a VGK 3-2 win over the Dallas Stars in Game 2 of the Best-of-7 Western Conference Finals.
It was Knights All-Star center Chandler Stephenson picking up a loose puck near the front of the Dallas goal and firing the puck into an unguarded net past Dallas netminder Jake Oettinger.
The arena erupted.
Vegas 3 Dallas 2 in OT.
VGK coach Bruce Cassidy said postgame his team has inner confidence to pull out games when the contest is on the line — even when the Knights are scored upon first.
Cassidy put it simply about the Knights players and the playoff wins” “There are no passengers.”
Amazingly, all four conference final games in the NHL have gone into OT, with Florida beating Carolina in the east and the VGK defeating Dallas in the west.
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It’s the conference finals. So naturally here in Las Vegas, the Stars vs Knights Game 2 is off to OT after VGK Misfit Jonathan Marchessault tied the game with only a little more than two minutes left in the final period thanks to a gorgeous pass from linemate Jack Eichel.
Marchessault said this is the most talented of the four VGK teams that have reached the NHL’s Final Four in Vegas’ six years of existence.
Both Florida-Carolina games went to OT. Same here for Games 1 and 2 in Las Vegas.
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This is the Dallas Stars club the Vegas Golden Knights were expecting for the Western Conference Finals.
For Game 2 at a Sunday noontime start, the Stars brought their tight defense (only 10 Vegas shots on goal late in period two today); opportunistic goal scoring and doling out the hits (24 in period 2 today compared to five after two periods in Game 1 Friday).
After two periods, Dallas had a 2-l lead over the VGK.
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The Dallas Stars came out for Game 2 today more engaged than in Game 1 Friday night.
After two periods in Game 1, the Stars racked up five hits. Sunday for Game 2, Dallas registered five hits after the first seven minutes against the Vegas Golden Knights.
And less than three minutes into the game Dallas scored on a goal by defenseman Miro Heiskanen.
In a much more physical game than Game 1, the Knights cashed in on a 5-on-3 with a goal by Mark Stone, who picked up a puck off the skate of a Dallas defenseman and poked the puck past Stars goalie Jake Oettinger for a 1-1 deadlock.
That’s how the first period ended — it was one apiece.
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Dallas was outstanding on defense. Stars forward Jason Robertson scored the second period’s only goal and Dallas had a 2-1 lead after 40 minutes, limiting Vegas to only 10 shots on goal after two periods.
The Dallas Stars piled up only five hits through the first two periods of their Game 1 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights, so Dallas coach Pete DeBoer expects his club to be more engaged and physical for Game 2 that starts at 12Noon Sunday in Las Vegas.
“We were not engaged enough,” DeBoer said in response to an LVSportsBiz.com pregame question today about Game 1.
DeBoer added that if his team is going to get beat, he wants a club to beat his team’s best game.
The Stars coach did make a crack about the starting times of NHL playoff games, noting he went to get coffee at his hotel at 7AM today and Electric Daisy Carnival partiers were just getting back from their music festival at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. DeBoer referred to home games starting at 9PM in Dallas and 12Noon in Las Vegas.
DeBoer cracked people don’t get up until 2 PM on Sundays in Vegas after partying on Saturday nights.
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The VGK game vibe at T-Mobile Arena impressed Dallas player Mason Marchment, who said the ground vibrated before Game 1 two days ago. Marchment said he liked the Knights’ over-the-top pregame hoopla and presentation.
“Even for us, it’s a big pump-up” Marchment said before today’s game.
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More pregame:
