3 takeaways from Knights’ loss: Costly mistake spoils goalie’s effort
The Golden Knights got away with it once. Doing it twice tempted fate too much.
For a second consecutive game, the Knights took a delay of game penalty late in the third period nursing a one-goal lead.
They survived defenseman Alec Martinez’s mistake Saturday against the Tampa Bay Lightning. But they couldn’t do it a second time when defenseman Alex Pietrangelo went to the penalty box with 1:55 left in regulation Tuesday at Chicago’s United Center.
The Blackhawks took advantage of the opening. Left wing Tyler Johnson tied the game with a power-play goal with 55 seconds remaining. He then delivered the only goal of a shootout to give Chicago a 3-2 win.
The result snapped the Knights’ five-game winning streak and gave them their first loss since the All-Star break. It also spoiled an impressive performance from goaltender Laurent Brossoit, who made his first NHL appearance since March 15.
“We didn’t play a very respectful game at all,” coach Bruce Cassidy said. “He was there for us when we broke down.”
The Knights (34-18-5) weren’t at their best for most of the game.
But it looked for a long time as if that wasn’t going to matter. A goal from center Jack Eichel gave them a 2-1 lead with 8:28 left in the second period.
Brossoit kept them in front almost the rest of the way by making 37 saves. The veteran has spent nearly the entire season in the American Hockey League after undergoing offseason hip surgery, but it looked as if he belonged back in the NHL on Tuesday.
“For the most part, (I) felt pretty good aside from a few jitters in the first period,” Brossoit said.
Brossoit needed to be sharp because the Knights’ defense was porous compared to previous games.
Chicago (19-32-5), which has scored the fewest goals in the NHL, generated numerous odd-man rushes. Center Cole Guttman scored on one with 7:31 left in the first period.
The Knights hung on until a late faceoff after Pietrangelo’s penalty. Center Max Domi won the draw back to right wing Patrick Kane, who fed Johnson for a one-timer in the high slot that soared over Brossoit’s glove.
The Knights were lucky the game even got to a shootout from there. Kane appeared to score a buzzer-beater in overtime in what could be one of his final home games for the Blackhawks.
The three-time Stanley Cup champion and 2016 Hart Trophy winner for NHL MVP is a pending unrestricted free agent. His name has popped up plenty in the rumor mill before the March 3 trade deadline, so a game winner would have been a great send-off.
Kane was denied his moment of magic, though. His goal was disallowed because it was determined to have come after time expired.
It turned out to be only a temporary respite for the Knights. Johnson’s goal in the shootout gave Chicago its third straight win.
“We had a lot of lulls in our game at times when (Brossoit) stood on his head for us,” right wing Keegan Kolesar said. “Getting that outcome, it’s pretty sad for us.”
Here are three takeaways from the loss:
1. Kane’s performance
Kane played a season-high 25:01.
His assist on Johnson’s game-tying goal gave him seven points in his past three games in what might be his final stretch in Chicago. He does have a full no-move clause in his contract, so he will determine if he wants to leave before the deadline.
Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson said on NBC Sports Chicago on Tuesday that Kane has not approached him with a decision.
2. Fourth line strikes
The Knights took an early lead when Kolesar scored 3:26 into the first period.
His goal was the team’s fifth from the fourth line in the past six games. Kolesar and center Nicolas Roy have four points in that span, and left wing Brett Howden has three.
3. Power-play slump continues
The Blackhawks got a key goal from their power play. The Knights continued to get nothing from theirs.
They were 0-for-1 with one shot. They are in an 0-for-24 drought and 1-for-31 since captain Mark Stone suffered a back injury Jan. 12 against Florida.
Contact Ben Gotz at bgotz@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BenSGotz on Twitter.
