FSM Essential Recap: Golden Knights vs Canucks - Game 72

FSM Essential Recap: Golden Knights vs Canucks – Game 72

Franchise Sports Media

Golden Knights (39-29-4)  | Vancouver Canucks (33-28-10)

The Golden Knights lose to Canucks 5-1 and remain out of a playoff spot.

The Vegas Golden Knights met the Vancouver Canucks Wednesday night for the second of three matches in nine days. They lost the game 5-1, with Jack Eichel scoring the only goal for the VGK. This snaps the Golden Knights’ five-game winning streak and ends their streak of earning at least one point against the Canucks in team history.

More importantly, this keeps the Golden Knights out of a playoff spot with the Dallas Stars, Nashville Predators, Edmonton Oilers, and Los Angeles Kings all ahead of them in the Western Conference standings. All four of these teams will have a chance to gain separation Thursday night as well.

The Canucks played a simple hockey game Wednesday night and limited the Golden Knights to few offensive chances. It will take a miracle, but the Canucks are still in the mix for a playoff spot and kept their hopes alive Wednesday. No lineup changes were made for the Golden Knights as they stuck with seven defensemen, and Robin Lehner made his second-straight start. It was Organ Donor Night, and the team wore special warm-up jerseys, which were auctioned off.

On a rare occasion, the Canucks had a strong start that Bruce Boudreau was undoubtedly happy with. But it was the Golden Knights who scored the games’ first goal. After a faceoff win, Brayden McNabb fed a puck down low to Chandler Stephenson, who found Eichel in the slot. He hit the crossbar on his first shot attempt, and with the puck falling, Thatcher Demko made a miraculous save to keep the puck out. But unfortunately for him, he swatted it right back to Eichel, who didn’t miss on his second chance.

Eichel now has five goals in his last six games and, since joining the Golden Knights, leads the team in goal scoring with ten goals.

The Canucks didn’t let this sink them and scored two goals before the first 20 minutes were over. On their first powerplay of the game, Bo Horvat scored with Ben Hutton in the box for a hold. Oliver Ekman-Larsson fired a shot from the blue line, which hit the left pad of Lehner and caused a juicy rebound on which Horvat cashed in.

Then, just 17 seconds later, the Canucks took the lead.

Conor Garland picked off a failed breakout pass from Alec Martinez, and Jason Dickinson found the loose puck. Brad Richardson would score off the turnover for his first goal as a Canuck. The Golden Knights closed out a sloppy period defensively with a hooking penalty to McNabb, on which the Canucks could not score.

In the second period, the Canucks played a simple brand of hockey and did an excellent job of limiting the Golden Knight’s chances. Jonathan Marchessault had the only substantial attempt from the VGK on the period, set up in the slot by William Karlsson. The opportunistic Canucks took their time and cashed in on their chances when they came. Off the rush, Elias Pettersson made a slick move to set up Tanner Pearson, who scored to make it 3-1.

Then, Pettersson scored a goal himself after Ekman-Larsson found him in the slot with just enough time and space to make it 4-1. The buzzer rang after 40 minutes, but the bleeding continued in the third. McNabb went to the box again for taking out the legs of Pettersson, and the Canucks scored after a brutal Martinez turnover on the penalty kill. Pettersson got the goal which put him up to four points on the night.

Canucks fans were heard chanting “Bruce, there it is” at T-Mobile Arena. The Golden Knights got a five-on-three chance in the third and called a timeout but finished the game down four goals, losing 5-1.

The Golden Knights host the Arizona Coyotes at T-Mobile on Saturday. They drop the puck at 7:00 pm on AT&T Sports Net.