Chandler Stephenson scores twice as Golden Knights top Kings
Chemistry between linemates can be difficult to define, more of a you-know-it-when-you-see-it concept.
The Golden Knights showed that sixth sense Sunday.
Chandler Stephenson bagged a pair of goals, including the winner early in the third period, and the Knights did enough to beat Los Angeles 4-3 on Sunday at T-Mobile Arena.
The Knights (7-1-1, 15 points) swept the two-game series and moved into a tie for first place in the West Division with idle Colorado and St. Louis. They also remained unbeaten in three games wearing their gold jerseys.
“I’ve said since Day One beating any team in this league twice is going to be really tough, and I think you see that when you look around the league,” coach Pete DeBoer said. “There’s no doubt we made it tougher on ourselves. But having said that, you got to win all kinds of ways in a season and particularly in a shortened season like this.”
Stephenson’s go-ahead goal on a power play 1:38 into the third period came with a bit of good fortune, as he tried to center a pass to Alex Tuch. The puck deflected off the stick of Kings defenseman Kale Clague and fooled goalie Calvin Petersen, who couldn’t close his pads fast enough.
The Knights went 4-for-4 on the penalty kill, including two in the third period. Los Angeles was held without a shot on goal during its final power play after Tomas Nosek was whistled for tripping with 4:26 remaining.
Robin Lehner bounced back from a slow start to snap a personal two-game winless skid. He allowed goals on the first two shots he faced and appeared to injure his shoulder in the second period by a shot from Adrian Kempe before battling through to finish with 29 saves.
But it was the Knights’ cohesion on the top two lines that allowed them to bounce back from two deficits in the first period.
Reilly Smith answered Anze Kopitar’s goal that came 36 seconds into the game with his third of the season, a rising shot off the rush from the left faceoff dot.
The play started in neutral zone after a Kings turnover when Jonathan Marchessault picked up the puck with his back to the play, wheeled and knew exactly where to find Smith ahead of the pack at the blue line.
“A lot of times it seems like he’s got eyes in the back of his head,” Smith said. “He’s great with the puck. He’s able to make really good plays. Most of the time, you don’t really have to call for it because he knows what’s open.”
Defenseman Zach Whitecloud notched his first career regular-season goal in the first period 26 seconds after Kempe scored to put Los Angeles ahead 2-1.
Stephenson then put the Knights ahead at 11:37 of the first after Mark Stone tracked down a loose puck in the neutral zone and sent a no-look pass to his streaking linemate.
Stephenson’s only other two-goal game came as a member of the Washington Capitals on Jan. 31, 2018, against Philadelphia.
“Building from last year to this year and just the chemistry that we’ve built and know exactly where each other are going to be and how each other play, it’s just a good click that we have,” Stephenson said. “It’s obviously something that’s always going to take work, and we’re looking to get better and just be the best we can be.”
Contact David Schoen at dschoen@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5203. Follow @DavidSchoenLVRJ on Twitter.
