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To say it’s been an eventful few days for the Vegas Golden Knights would be an understatement. On the ice, their squad was shutout on Monday and Tuesday, sending their playoff hopes even further into the depths. Off the ice, they had a trade meant to address their tenuous cap situation revoked because somehow there was a misunderstanding regarding Evgenii Dadonov’s partial no-trade clause. So, awkwardly, less than a week after publicly announcing that they traded him a way, Vegas put Dadonov back into the lineup.
Logically one might assume that Dadonov wouldn’t have much motivation to put forth his best effort for a team that just tried to get rid of him, but clearly that’s not Dadonov’s way. He got right back to work and had a fantastic game, scoring a goal and registering two assists as Vegas shook off its recent offensive woes with a 6-1 victory against the Nashville Predators.
“I felt the support from the fans,” Dadonov said, per The Athletic’s Jesse Granger after the game, which was played in Vegas. “It probably pumped me up even more. I’ve always liked playing here, even when I was in Florida. I think they’re the best fans in the league.”
As I noted yesterday, Vegas needs every point it can get right now if it’s to have any chance of making the playoffs. This win doesn’t solve the Golden Knights’ problems either in the standings or with regards to their potential cap issues, but it certainly helps.
Before I move on to Thursday’s game notes, I also want to mention that Vegas’ Brett Howden was the victim of a scary collision during the contest. He crashed head-first into the boards while losing his balance and had to be taken off the ice on a stretcher. The good news is that he is in stable condition and Vegas reported that he has no injury to his neck or spine.
Don’t forget, for everything NHL, check out NBC Sports EDGE’s Player News, and follow @NBCSEdgeHK and @RyanDadoun on Twitter.
BOSTON 3 TAMPA BAY 2
One player doesn’t win a game on its own, but its hard to see how the Bruins would have gotten two points tonight without David Pastrnak. He led Boston with a hat trick, bringing him up to 36 goals and 64 points in 64 games.
Erik Haula assisted on all three of Pastrnak’s goals. That gives Haula eight goals and 30 points in 61 contests.
Jeremy Swayman stopped 22 of 24 Lightning shots. That’s the second straight game that he’s won while allowing just two goals.
Brandon Hagel scored his first goal as a member of the Tampa Bay Lighting. He had 21 goals and 37 points in 55 contests with Chicago before being traded.
Andrei Vasilevskiy kicked out 36 of 39 shots last night. He has a 32-14-4 record with a 2.39 GAA and .920 save percentage in 50 games this season.
FLORIDA 4 MONTREAL 3
The Panthers’ offense was spread out with Anthony Duclair, Sam Reinhart, Aleksander Barkov, and Mason Marchment each finding the back of the net. Barkov is up to 27 goals and 63 points in 50 contests.
Claude Giroux registered two assists in his Panthers debut. He had 18 goals and 42 points in 57 games back when he was with the Philadelphia Flyers.
Spencer Knight saved 28 of 31 shots on Thursday. He allowed a power-play goal just 29 seconds into the contest, but he didn’t allow his game to unravel. Of course, it helps that Barkov’s goal came just seven seconds later, making Montreal’s lead short-lived.
Nick Suzuki was the Canadiens player to score that early power-play goal. It was his 18th goal and 47th point in 64 games.
Jake Allen stopped 38 of 42 Panthers shots. He’s lost three of his last four games while allowing 12 goals over that span.
DALLAS 4 CAROLINA 3 (SO)
Scott Wedgewood stopped 44 of 47 shots in regulation time. He then was victorious in three straight shootout rounds to get the extra point.
Frederik Andersen didn’t have nearly as busy a night, turning aside 12 of 15 shots. When it came to the shootout, he was beaten in one of two rounds and consequently lost the game.
Nino Niederreiter scored a pair of goals for Carolina. That gives him 19 goals and 33 points in 57 contests.
Dallas’ Roope Hintz matched him with two goals of his own. Hintz has 28 markers and 55 points in 61 games.
The Stars’ other regulation goal was netted by Jamie Benn. He’s up to 16 goals and 38 points in 63 contests.
NY ISLANDERS 5 DETROIT 2
Brock Nelson scored two goals, including the game winner. He has 29 goals and 44 points in 53 games.
Anders Lee assisted on three of the Islanders’ five goals. That gives him 24 goals and 36 points in 56 contests.
Ilya Sorokin stopped 37 of 39 Red Wings shots. He didn’t allow a goal until 13:25 of the third period and by that point, Detroit’s goal only narrowed the Islanders’ lead to 4-1.
By contrast, Thomas Greiss got off to a rough start, allowing two goals on just five shots in the first period. He did save 10 of 11 shots in the second, but he had to leave the game after that due to an upper-body injury. Alex Nedeljkovic came into the game and saved eight of 10 shots the rest of the way.
Pius Suter scored a goal for the Red Wings. He’s up to 13 goals and 27 points in 64 games.
OTTAWA 5 WINNIPEG 2
Brady Tkachuk accounted for Ottawa’s first goal of the game and its final one. That gives him 22 goals and 46 points in 61 contests.
Colin White netted the game-winning goal. It was his second goal and seventh point in 14 games.
Anton Forsberg stopped 22 of 24 shots Thursday night. He has a 15-13-2 record, 2.72 GAA, and a .918 save percentage in 33 games.
Mark Scheifele assisted on both of the Jets’ goals. He has 24 goals and 59 points in 59 contests.
Connor Hellebuyck turned aside 28 of 32 Senators shots. Most of the damage came in the third period when he allowed three goals on 13 shots.
PHILADELPHIA 5 ST. LOUIS 2
Hayden Hodgson had an NHL debut to remember. He scored a goal and registered an assist for the Flyers while logging 16:23 minutes.
Travis Konecny scored two goals, including the game winner. He’s up to 12 goals and 42 points in 62 contests.
Martin Jones stopped 26 of 28 Blues shots. He’s 8-12-3 with a 3.30 GAA and .903 save percentage in 24 games.
At the other end of the ice, Jordan Binnington saved 22 of 26 shots. He’s lost each of his last four starts while allowing a combined 13 goals over that span.
MINNESOTA 3 VANCOUVER 2 (OT)
Joel Eriksson Ek scored the overtime winner. He has 19 goals and 33 points in 57 contests.
Kirill Kaprizov contributed a goal and an assist for the Wild. He has 33 goals and 78 points in 61 games.
Cam Talbot stopped 26 of 28 Canucks shots. He has a 26-12-1 record, 2.82 GAA, and .910 save percentage in 40 contests.
Bo Horvat found the back of the net for Vancouver. It was his 25th goal and 43rd point in 61 games.
Thatcher Demko saved 33 of 36 shots last night. He’s allowed at least three goals in each of his last three starts.
EDMONTON 5 SAN JOSE 2
Oilers’ Leon Draisaitl scored a pair of goals. He’s up to 44 goals and 90 points in 65 contests.
Kailer Yamamoto contributed a goal and an assist for Edmonton. That gives him 18 goals and 32 points in 64 games.
Mike Smith stopped 28 of 30 Sharks shots. He’s 7-8-2 with a 3.28 GAA and .898 save percentage in 18 starts.
At the other end of the ice, Kaapo Kahkonen saved 36 of 40 shots. Two of the four goals he surrendered were scored during Oilers power plays.
Tomas Hertl scored a goal and registered an assist for the Sharks. He has 26 goals and 52 points in 64 games.
VEGAS 6 NASHVILLE 1
In his first game with Vegas since the trade got revoked, Evgenii Dadonov scored a goal and registered two assists. That gives him 16 goals and 30 points in 63 games.
Chandler Stephenson also had a goal and two assists for the Golden Knights. He’s up to 16 goals and 49 points in 64 contests.
Logan Thompson saved 35 of 36 Predators shots. The only goal he allowed was scored during a Predators power play.
Roman Josi registered an assist for Nashville. That extended his point streak to 12 games, which matches his previous career high.
Juuse Saros stopped 44 of a staggering 50 shots last night. He was bombarded with at least 15 shots in every period.
