Vegas Golden Knights’ Nick Cousins (21) is stopped by Chicago Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford (50) during the third period in Game 4 of an NHL hockey first-round playoff series Sunday, Aug. 16, 2020, in Edmonton, Alberta. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press via AP)
Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2020 | 2 a.m.
It goes against the normal way of thinking to call a loss the best game of a series, but multiple Golden Knights and their coach have done just that.
The playoffs are a results-based business. If the process is there but wins aren't coming in the regular season, you have 82 games to figure it out. You don't have that kind of time in the postseason, but being up 3-0 in a series helps soothe losses.
The Golden Knights lost Game 4 but were pleased with the process. Don't expect them to change much from their record-setting performance when they take on the Chicago Blackhawks at 7:30 p.m. in Game 5 with a chance to eliminate the Blackhawks and advance to the second round.
"I think how you lose is more important than if you lose, and for me we lost the right way (Sunday)," coach Peter DeBoer. "I thought we came out with the intention of closing that series out and played that way. It didn't happen. You have to acknowledge what they did and particularly what their goalie did and move on and try to do it again Tuesday night."
What their goalie did was shut down a relentless offensive attack all night. Corey Crawford was superb and if the Golden Knights were to get nearly a hundred shot attempts again, a win is likely.
There isn't much in the game plan that needs to be reconfigured. That's the luxury of being up 3-1 in a series with three more chances to finish it. The Golden Knights know they've already beaten Crawford three times this series, so it's not as if he's some bogeyman that Vegas can't beat.
"We took it to them pretty good," forward Nick Cousins said. "If we bring that game and that same energy for (tonight), we should hopefully get a few more lucky bounces."
Cousins and his line were spectacular in Game 4, and have been all series since a tough round-robin together. On Sunday with Cousins, Nicolas Roy and Alex Tuch on the ice, the Golden Knights had 23 shot attempts and allowed just two. Those three also helped create 11 scoring chances and did not allow one in more than 10 minutes on the ice together.
It's the kind of mismatch DeBoer had hoped for when putting them together. Now that they've played together a couple of games, that's coming together in a big way. They've only been on the ice for one goal together this series, but much like the Golden Knights as a whole in Game 4, the process suggests the results aren't that far off.
"Each and every game we gain a little bit more chemistry," Cousins said. "It's been a fun line so far. I think we're clicking right now."
By winning the first three games of the series, the Golden Knights earned the right to shrug off Game 4 as an anomaly rather than a bug in the system that needs updated. It's likelier that Chicago's win delayed the inevitable instead of sparking a historic comeback.
The Golden Knights wanted to finish the series Sunday and not have to play today at all. But here they are, and if they do the same thing today they did two days ago, odds are they won't need to bother with a Game 6.
Series: Golden Knights lead 3-1
TV: AT&T SportsNet (DirecTV 684, Cox 1313, CenturyLink 1760)
Radio: Fox Sports 1340 AM and 98.9 FM
Betting line: Golden Knights minus-200, Blackhawks plus-170; over/under: 5.5 (minus-125, plus-105)
Golden Knights (6-1, Western Conference No. 1 seed)
Previous round: Defeated Dallas, St. Louis and Colorado in round-robin
Coach: Peter DeBoer (first season)
Points leaders: Reilly Smith, Mark Stone (7)
Goals leaders: Shea Theodore (4)
Assists leaders: Nick Cousins, Jonathan Marchessault, Ryan Reaves, Reilly Smith, Mark Stone (4)
Expected goalie: Robin Lehner (2.32 GAA, .908 save percentage)
Blackhawks (4-4, Western Conference No. 12 seed)
Previous round: Defeated Edmonton 3-1 in qualifying round
Coach: Jeremy Colliton (second season)
Points leaders: Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews (8)
Goals leader: Dominik Kubalik, Jonathan Toews (4)
Assists leaders: Patrick Kane (7)
Expected goalie: Corey Crawford (3.21 GAA, .909 save percentage)
Golden Knights projected lineup
Forwards
Max Pacioretty—Chandler Stephenson—Mark Stone
Jonathan Marchessault—William Karlsson—Reilly Smith
Nick Cousins—Nicolas Roy—Alex Tuch
William Carrier—Patrick Brown—Ryan Reaves
Defensemen
Brayden McNabb—Nate Schmidt
Alec Martinez—Shea Theodore
Nick Holden—Zach Whitecloud
Goalies
Robin Lehner, Marc-André Fleury
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