The Vegas Golden Knights entered Thursday’s game against the Utah Mammoth in search of their first preseason win. They looked dead in the water through 50 minutes, but mounted a comeback thanks to a little Marner Magic and two goals from Jack Eichel. The Golden Knights completed the comeback thanks to a Shea Theodore overtime winner and won 3-2.  

The first period was the definition of “low-event hockey.” Through 15 minutes, the Golden Knights boasted two shots on net; the Mammoth finally managed to record their first 15:21 into the period.

Unfortunately for the Golden Knights, the Mammoth made their first shot count. JJ Peterka picked Jack Eichel’s pocket at center ice, entered the zone, and threaded a pass to Dylan Guenther. Guenther took the pass in stride, blew barrelled towards the net, and slid the puck under Adin Hill.

The Mammoth doubled their lead 1:06 into the second period. Shea Theodore turned the puck over, and Barrett Hayton fed Dylan Guenther between the hashmarks for a one-timer.

With just over 10 minutes remaining in regulation, the Golden Knights looked like they were ready to hit the showers and live to fight another day. They were down just two goals, but with how they were playing, it seemed insurmountable. They looked tired and rusty.

And then, something shifted.

The Golden Knights finally got on the board at 10:18 in the third period. Ivan Barbashev muscled the puck away from Nick DeSimone and Dylan Guenther and sent it to Mitch Marner below the goal line. Marner gloved the pass down and found Jack Eichel between the hash marks, and Eichel didn’t miss.

Eichel’s goal gave the Golden Knights new life. Six minutes later, Cole Reinhardt took a number and dropped the gloves with Gabe Smith. The officials gave both players five minutes for fighting and stuck the Mammoth with an additional roughing penalty.

The Golden Knights scored just 13 seconds into their third power play opportunity. Ivan Barbashev backhanded a cross-ice pass to Jack Eichel, who ripped the puck past Vitek Vanecek from the left circle.

The Golden Knights spent most of overtime hemmed into their own zone. But in the end, they only needed one scoring chance to end the game.

Theodore lost his stick and picked it up right in time to receive Jack Eichel’s stretch pass. He entered the zone alone, moved in on Vanecek, and faked a shot. Vanecek bit, and Theodore went forehand-backhand around Vanecek to complete the comeback.

7 Golden Knights Observations

1. The other night, I wrote that time was running out for Alexander Holtz to establish himself in Vegas. Tonight, he certainly took strides towards doing so. He was extremely noticeable throughout the night and was one of the few bright spots in a fairly uneventful first period. 

2. This will come as no surprise to anyone anywhere, but Mitch Marner is very good at hockey. He’s dangerous every time he touches the puck. It doesn’t matter where he is on the ice or who he’s on the ice with. He’s a creator, and an exceptional one at that.

3. That being said, it’ll be very interesting to see him continue to quarterback the power play. Now, the top unit was missing three key players in Tomáš Hertl, Mark Stone, and Pavel Dorofeyev. But Marner doesn’t have the slapshot that Shea Theodore and Noah Hanifin do. He’ll need to fire the puck more, or penalty killers units aren’t going to respect him as a shooter.

4. Don’t look now, but Jack Eichel is on pace for 164 goals. He’s always had a good shot, and the Golden Knights need him to use it this season. If tonight’s game is any indicator, Eichel doesn’t have any problem with that.

5. It took them a few periods, but the Barbashev–Eichel–Marner line really started to click in the final 10 minutes of regulation. But even when they were a little off, you could see the foundations of what they could become. 

6. My, oh my, what a bit of defensive work that was from Shea Theodore right before his game-winner. Nick Schmaltz was staring down Adin Hill after a stretch pass from Nate Schmidt, and Theodore got in there with an insanely well-timed stick lift after the backcheck of the preseason.

7. Please remember: at the end of the day, this is the preseason. These games matter, but the final score does not. Players will always compete, but the preseason is about getting their reps in. The veterans are easing themselves back into action after a summer without this kind of physicality.