Facing (Very) Early Deficit Against Flyers, VGK Score Three Times In Second Period En Route To 5-2 Win Over Flyers Before 17,909 Thursday
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Story by Alan Snel Photos by J. Tyge O’Donnell
LAS VEGAS, Nevada — Any hope that VGK goalie Ilya Samsonov would pitch a second straight shutout went out the door quickly, a mere 21 seconds into the game to be exact, as the Philadelphia Flyers welcomed themselves into T-Mobile Arena with a quick 1-0 lead.
The Flyers’ Tyson Foerster put the puck past Samsonov and the Golden Knights, still smarting from blowing a 2-0 lead to Montreal in a 3-2 loss to the Canadiens on New Year’s Eve, were put in the position of trying to come back from a deficit.
That’s not necessarily a bad thing for Vegas, a team peppered with veterans who know how to play with poise when mounting a comeback.
VGK responded with four consecutive goals in the second period into the third period before an announced crowd of 17,909 and took a 4-1 lead en route to a 5-2 win over the Flyers.
The Knights won their seventh in eight games and have 55 points with a 26-9-3 record.
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The Knights had a power play coming with three minutes left in the first period.
The Knights’ power play was rather anemic and after the first period Philly led VGK, 1-0.
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The Knights responded quickly.
Jack Eichel fed Mark Stone in front of the Philly goal and Stone put home his ninth goal of the season only 50 seconds into period two.
Then Nic Hague took a pocket pass from Keegan Kolesar and worked a wrap-around goal past Flyers goalie Aleksei Kolosov only 82 seconds later.
And just like that, the Knights had the lead, 2-1, in the middle stanza.
Vegas was not done.
Pavel Dorofeyev was able to tee up a wrister with less than two minutes to go in the period and fire the puck into the back of the net for his 14th. It gave the VGK a 3-1 lead late in the second period on First Responders Night.
Vegas skated into the second intermission with that two-goal advantage.
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Alexander Holtz notched his third of the season for a 4-1 VGK lead before Philly top scorer Travis Konecny scored to make a 4-2 game.
Tanner Pearson added an empty-netter with Stone and Eichel on the assists. Eichel had two assists tonight and 40 on the season.
The Knights play Eichel’s former team, the Buffalo Sabres, Saturday night here in Las Vegas.
