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Game Changers: VGK vs SJ, Game 2

April 13, 2019, 10:18 AM ET [9 Comments]
Jeff Paul
Vegas Golden Knights Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Game two was just as crazy as game one between the Vegas Golden Knights and the San Jose Sharks. There was an outpouring of goals in the first period, a goalie pull, and enough penalties to serve as a training course for aspiring referees. Momentum swung wildly throughout the contest with the Golden Knights eventually leaving San Jose with a 5-3 win and a tied series through two games. Picking up a win in San Jose was important for the Golden Knights; here’s the Game Changers from game two.

#1: (Bad) Martin Jones

San Jose continues to rely on Jones as their starting goaltender. Going into the series, he is literally the one weak spot on their roster. Problem is, he plays the most important, game-changing position in hockey. Heading into the playoffs with a goaltender sporting a sub-.900 save percentage will burn even the best of teams and in game two it burned the Sharks. Jones gave up three goals on just seven shots, putting his team in an early hole. He was subsequently yanked in favor of Aaron Dell. Their talented lineup was able to tie the game up before the first period ended, but that’s all they’d get the rest of the evening. Jones can be a really good goaltender, but the Sharks should not feel so confident with him, when the bad version of the young netminder continually rears its head.


Colin Miller Beating Martin Jones (USA Today Sports)

#2: Colin Miller

Miller served as a healthy scratch for game one and some speculated that it was due to his greater propensity for taking minor penalties compared to Nick Holden. Miller possesses the far superior puck skills and has been an offensive asset for the Golden Knights since their inception, thus he was back in the lineup for game two. He surely made his presence felt in the wild first period, when he took two minor penalties. Despite the penalties, Miller sandwiched a shorthanded goal in between them. After exiting the penalty box from his first infraction, a slash on Barclay Goodrow, Miller stole a pass at the blue line and broke toward the Sharks’ zone on a two-on-one rush with Paul Stastny. He decided to keep the puck and beat Jones to the blocker side, giving the Knights a 2-0 lead at 4:37 of the first period. His upside outweighs any shortcomings the coaching staff seem to see in him.

#3: The Officials

Once again, the game was full of minor penalties, on both ends of the ice. A total of 11 minor penalties were called on the Golden Knights and the Sharks took six of their own, resulting in a total of 11 power plays on the night. Some of the calls were soft, like the Miller cross-check that led to Hertl’s PPG, while the refs let many calls go at other times. Just 51 seconds into the second period, the Sharks beat Marc-Andre Fleury, but the goal was immediately waived off, with a goaltender interference penalty assessed to Logan Couture. Couture did not barrel into Fleury despite the backside of Brayden McNabb leading him toward the goalie. Sharks fans and Couture had a right to be displeased with the call and the Golden Knights naturally cashed in on the questionable power play. Stone’s goal was a huge turning point for the Golden Knights, as it looked like they had just given up their fourth straight goal. Overall, the officials called an inconsistent game that benefited and hurt both teams at different points of the game.

#4: Hey Shorty


Reilly Smith, William Karlsson (USA Today Sports)

Throughout the season, the Golden Knights have rolled three main penalty kill forward duos. Largely they would use Pierre-Edouard Bellemare with Tomas Nosek, Cody Eakin with Ryan Carpenter, and William Karlsson with Reilly Smith. Paul Stastny and Mark Stone have also been sprinkled into the mix, with Carpenter and Nosek sporadically serving as healthy scratches. The pair of Smith and Karlsson serves as a spark plug on the PK, due to their high hockey IQ and their ability to use it to steal the puck and create shorthanded chances. Some fans on Twitter have even started calling the duo a Power Kill. Karlsson scored the fifth goal of the game, the proverbial nail in the coffin, on the kill with a dazzling stretch pass from Smith, springing him on a breakaway. The two shorties scored by the Golden Knights may have been the biggest game changer of them all.

**

With another wild, back-and-forth game in the books, the teams are headed to Vegas with the series tied at one game apiece. If the Sharks won both of their home games, the Golden Knights would be as good as done in my book. They are expected to be joined this weekend by KHL stand-out Nikita Gusev, whose rights were acquired from the Tampa Bay Lightning in exchange for selecting Jason Garrison in the expansion draft. While Gusev has made highlight-reel plays and produced solid numbers in the KHL (17g-65a), these KHL imports don’t always pan out immediately and he may not see time immediately, while the Golden Knights are in a physical playoff matchup. He also is more of a playmaker, something the Golden Knights have an abundance of. His involvement is absolutely something to monitor throughout the series, but it would be shocking to see Gusev play and then subsequently make an impact in the playoffs. If the Golden Knights want a more offensive-minded third line left winger, then why is Brandon Pirri relegated to the press box?

Game three will be on Sunday evening in the T-Mobile Arena and the game may serve as a big momentum swing for the series. There will be more of the same hatred and emotion, stemming from Evander Kane's late bump into Stone along the boards following the final horn. The hit got the attention of the Golden Knights and while it wasn't necessary, it was surely a tactic from Kane used to get a rise out of the victors. Sunday's puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 PST and will be airing on NBCSN.

Be sure to follow me on the Twitter (@VGK_Buzz) for Golden Knights news, analysis, and updates.
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