Associated Press
Vegas Golden Knights right wing Evgenii Dadonov, right, celebrates with center Jack Eichel (9) after scoring against Florida Panthers goaltender Spencer Knight (30) during the second period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, March 17, 2022, in Las Vegas.
Published Thursday, March 17, 2022 | 10:11 p.m.
Updated Thursday, March 17, 2022 | 11:20 p.m.
When the Golden Knights acquired Evgenii Dadonov last summer in a trade with Ottawa, they were hoping to get the version who was a 70-point player once upon a time with the Florida Panthers.
Dadonov hasn't been that player in his first season with Vegas, but he looked that way against his former team Thursday, scoring two goals as the Golden Knights ended their five-game losing streak with a 5-3 win over the Panthers at T-Mobile Arena.
Vegas returned home after a five-game road trip that might have been the lowest point of its short history. With three losses to Eastern Conference teams outside of the playoff picture and being outscored 23-11, the Golden Knights entered the home matchup against the league’s second-best team in fifth place in the Pacific Division via percentage points and with six regulars out of the lineup.
“It’s funny. I’ve had a lot of winning streaks and a lot of losing streaks,” coach Pete DeBoer said after morning skate Thursday. “The winning streaks inevitably, as they go on, the worse your details get. And losing streaks are the opposite. As they lengthen, the better those things get.”
The Golden Knights appeared to turn that corner the last two games of the road trip, scoring seven goals despite giving up 13 in the process. The immediate challenge was finding a way to slow down a Florida team that’s averaged more than five goals per game over the past few months. Florida is the second-best team in the league in terms of points.
Vegas goalie Logan Thompson gave up eight of those goals in his past two appearances but on Thursday delivered against the toughest opponent he’s faced to date, with 33 saves, earning his second win in the NHL.
“It’s a big win for the goaltending department,” Thompson said. “I know I haven’t been great. Every goalie coach in their mom’s basement has let me know that. I hold myself accountable, and I owe it to the team to give ourselves a chance to win.”
Leading the charge offensively was Dadonov, who had his second multigoal game of the season. He gave the Golden Knights a 2-1 lead nearly six minutes into the second period when he cut from the right side to the center of the ice — his right skate dangling in the air — and beat Panthers goalie Spencer Knight with a wrist shot to the top-left corner.
“Some teams just take away the middle of the ice in transition,” Dadonov said. “I saw the open ice, cut it and just shot it.”
Despite the Golden Knights not having Max Pacioretty available for a third straight game, they welcomed back Brett Howden and Mattias Janmark to the lineup. Howden scored in his return after missing seven games due to an undisclosed injury.
Just when it seemed like the Golden Knights turned the corner, bad luck struck again. This time it was Jack Eichel, who blocked a shot with his arm shortly after Vegas took a two-goal lead in the second. He played the remainder of the period but did not play in the final 20 minutes.
“He didn’t come back, so obviously that’s not good,” DeBoer said. “He’ll get evaluated and we’ll know more tomorrow.”
Eichel’s absence opened the door for Florida midway through the third period. Panthers forward Sam Reinhart tied the game at 3-3 with seven minutes left in regulation when deflecting a shot on the power play.
Florida pushed the play in its favor for the first and third period offensively, but the Golden Knights had chances aplenty when they were on the rush. With 12 takeaways in the game, Vegas found room with centering passes in the middle of the ice. It allowed them to get more dangerous chances than usual in the crease and made life tough on Florida’s young goalie.
No chance was more dangerous in the third than when Nicolas Roy forced a turnover at the blue line and had a one-on-one chance against Knight with two Panthers barreling behind him. Roy, who has become one of Vegas’ best shootout options when it’s him against the goalie, got Knight to bite on the backhand and gave the Golden Knights a 4-3 lead.
“I think, especially the last two games, we’ve started to play better,” Roy said. “Confidence was a little tough there, but we kept going and kept pushing. We played a detailed 60 minutes tonight.”
As relieving of a win as this was for the Golden Knights, they’re not out of the woods yet. They’re still two points behind the Edmonton Oilers for third place in the Pacific Division and host the second-place Los Angeles Kings for a Saturday matinee.
For at least one night, though, Vegas could breathe a sigh of relief.
“I’m just proud of our group,” DeBoer said. “The group never quit. They keep showing up and giving us what they got. That was a hell of a gutsy win tonight.”
Danny Webster can be reached at 702-259-8814 or [email protected]. Follow Danny on Twitter at twitter.com/DannyWebster21.
