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Golden Knights Snap Five-Game Losing Streak with a 3-1 Win Over the Oilers

April 2, 2019, 6:44 PM ET [2 Comments]
Jeff Paul
Vegas Golden Knights Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Finally, a win!

Well it finally happened folks! Last night, the Vegas Golden Knights won a hockey game. Coming off of an 0-3-2 stretch, the playoff-bound Golden Knights didn’t need to win a game, but they needed to win a game.

Yeah, they needed to win a game.

With just three games remaining in the regular season, a return to the win column was definitely at the forefront of the team's mind.


USA Today Sports

Standing in their way was Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers who weren’t officially (but would soon be) eliminated from the playoffs. If the Colorado Avalanche got a point against the St. Louis Blues, the Oilers were done. By the end of the night, the Oilers lost and the Avalanche forced an unsuccessful shootout against the Blues, with an Alexander Kerfoot goal in the final minute of regulation time. Following their loss to the Golden Knights, McDavid seemed dejected and went as far as saying, “It sucks obviously, it’s not good enough, all year.”

Something that is becoming more common lately is a solid game from third-line center Cody Eakin. Eakin built on his new career high in goals (22) and tied his previous high for points (40) in the game against the Oilers. He scored the first goal of the night, late in the first period, with a beautiful wrist shot to the high, far-side corner. His brilliance in Paul Stastny's absence earlier this season displayed just how good Eakin can be, in an elevated role. Now firmly set back on the third line, Eakin finds himself matched with Alex Tuch and a revolving door of Brandon Pirri, Ryan Carpenter, and/or Tomas Nosek on the left wing. Heading toward the playoffs with such an adept 3C, bodes well for the Golden Knights.

Jonathan scored the only other goal on Oiler netminder, Mikko Koskinen, the eventual game-winner early on in the second period. Marchessault’s 25th goal of the year came a short :51 into the second period. That goal marked the third-straight 25-goal campaign of Marchessault’s career. Pierre-Edouard Bellemare would later seal the 3-1 win with an empty-netter while on the penalty kill. Despite a strong push, the Oilers were unable to capitalize on Nosek's late penalty. A flurry in the final minute of the game came up short, similar to their playoff aspirations.

Despite the win, the Golden Knights did not play a perfect game. They had good stretches of play and got the job done, but this team continues to look questionable down the stretch. Following the Mark Stone acquisition, the Golden Knights were essentially unbeatable, going 10-1-0 in the first 11 games of the “Stone Age”. Recently, they have been struggling, going as far as allowing the San Jose Sharks to end their seven-game losing streak against them on Sunday. Backup goaltender Malcolm Subban has been susceptible to the occasional soft goal, while also making highlight-reel saves. His superior, Marc-Andre Fleury, seems to be trending toward a return to the lineup, in questionably good timing for the start of the playoffs. With an impending round one matchup with the Sharks on the horizon, the Golden Knights need to find some consistency, to avoid an early exit from the playoffs. Seeing how evenly matched the two are and the heated rivalry budding, either team can win. Over the next two games, best believe the Golden Knights will be looking to build some consistency and momentum, gearing up for their war with San Jose later this month.

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