Frantic final minutes deliver Golden Knights victory over Flames

By Justin Emerson

Sunday, March 8, 2020 | 7:48 p.m.

The Golden Knights squandered a comfortable 3-0 lead tonight in Calgary, allowing the Flames to even the game with three minutes remaining.

But Vegas avoid a complete collapse by regaining the lead with 1:10 to play on a Shea Theodore goal, and then secured the victory with an empty-netter from Jonathan Marchessault in a 5-3 win.

“Playoffs, there’s not one way of winning,” forward Max Pacioretty said to AT&T SportsNet. “We’ve found ways to win games differently as of late. We haven’t had one like this in a while, but it should give us confidence.”

Tomas Nosek, Nick Holden and Pacioretty also scored for the Golden Knights, who reclaimed sole possession of first place in the Pacific Division. They lead the Edmonton Oilers by two points, and will face Edmonton on Monday night on the road.

Robin Lehner made 19 saves to remain undefeated in three starts with the Golden Knights.

Here are three takeaways from the win.

Tiebreaking scenarios

Winning in regulation was crucial for Vegas on Sunday. Every point matters in the race for the Pacific Division title. The same is true for the tiebreaker scenario of wins in regulation compared to overtime wins.

So, when Matthew Tkachuck’s shot went in at the 17-minute mark of the third period for the Flames, it could have been a disaster for Golden Knights.

Of course, they want to win to earn two points in the standings, but a overtime win wouldn’t have been ideal.

The Knights and Oilers entered the day with identical records of 37-24-8, but Edmonton was in first place on the tiebreaker of 31 wins in regulation in comparison to Vegas’ 29. Now, Vegas has 30 regulation wins entering Monday’s game.

“A lot of desperate hockey when we play in our division right now,” Pacioretty said to AT&T SportsNet. “Teams are so close to each other in the standings. Some of the best players in the world over there tomorrow that are feeling good about their game, so we’ve got to slow them down and win a hockey game.”

Offense from the defense

Peter DeBoer’s first practice as Golden Knights coach included defensemen leading the rush and entering the offensive zone. Vegas has a few mobile defensemen who to that point had not unlocked their potential, and that became one of DeBoer’s priorities.

The Golden Knights’ second goal was precisely what he had in mind. Nick Holden scored, something by itself isn’t all that noteworthy. But the fact that he scored on a 2-on-1, well that’s something that opens ice.

Holden and Nick Cousins were the first men in after Cousins took a neutral zone pass from Brandon Pirri to get around the defense. Cousins drew the goalie to the left of the crease and fed to Holden for the finish. It gave Vegas a 2-0 lead in the first period.

Holden had two points, and Theodore and Alec Martinez each and one.”

Under Gerard Gallant, Vegas defenseman had 80 points in 49 games (1.6 per game). In 21 games under DeBoer, they have 50 points (2.4 per game).

“That’s something that we’re focused on, making sure that we’re involved,” Holden said to AT&T SportsNet. “In the NHL right now, you have to make sure your ‘D’ are providing some offense, and tonight for us to be able to score a couple big goals was big.”

No problem with the Flames

Had the playoffs started with today’s game, the Golden Knights first-round opponent would have been the Flames. And if that were the case, Vegas could be at an advantage.

The win moved the Golden Knights to 3-0 against Calgary this season with a goal differential of 17-5 in the three games. Calgary led 2-1 in the first meeting back in October, and since them Vegas scored the next 14 goals in the series before Calgary got on the board Sunday.

It hasn’t always been so rosy against the Flames. Vegas’ win Sunday was its first in Calgary since Jan. 30, 2018. In the four losses, Vegas had been outscored 20-6.

Justin Emerson can be reached at 702-259-8814 or [email protected]. Follow Justin on Twitter at twitter.com/@j15emerson.