Golden Knights get 3 quick goals in 2nd to beat Stars 5-3 (Dec 09, 2017)

By AP
Published

DALLAS (AP) In their first NHL season, the Vegas Golden Knights are getting big goals from players up and down the roster.

This time, it was David Perron who got them started during a second-period flurry.

Perron, Reilly Smith and Brayden McNabb scored in a span of 3:37 to turn a 1-all tie into a two-goal lead, and Vegas held off the Dallas Stars 5-3 on Saturday night for its fourth straight victory.

''Every night there's someone else stepping up at the right time,'' Perron said.

The win came one night after the expansion Golden Knights rallied on Erik Haula's tying goal with 40 seconds left and Smith's shootout winner.

Perron noticed ''mostly how much energy we had to use last night trying to come back in the game and then we found a way to win that game. You come in later in the morning, it's almost 3 a.m. when you go to bed.''

The Stars have lost three in a row, all to teams ahead of them in the Western Conference, following a five-game winning streak.

Tyler Seguin and his Dallas teammates took the defeat hard.

''If I look at myself, the last three games against the big dogs, I wasn't big enough,'' Seguin said. ''I've got to be a lot better.''

Seguin assisted on Jamie Benn's goal that pulled Dallas to 4-3 with 15:44 to play. Maxime Lagace held the Stars scoreless for the final 15:43 and finished with 36 saves.

That time included a two-minute power play and 1:29 with an extra skater after the Stars pulled goalie Ben Bishop, who stopped 34 shots.

''I knew they were gonna buzz,'' Lagace said. ''They like to look for the tap-ins. I just kept my head on the puck and ended up on my blocker or pads.''

Lagace had played in only one of the previous seven games and could be the odd goalie out for the Golden Knights when Marc-Andre Fleury returns from injury.

''He was outstanding,'' Vegas coach Gerard Gallant said about Lagace. ''He's just battled hard and played real well. He was the difference maker in the game tonight for sure.''

Perron's power-play goal at 4:58 of the second period broke a 1-all tie and McNabb scored at 8:35 for a 4-2 lead. Alex Tuch had the Golden Knights' first goal in the first period, and Haula scored into an empty net with 42 seconds left.

Goals by Tyler Pitlick in the first period and Jason Spezza tied the game for Dallas. But 45 seconds after Spezza's goal, Smith gave the Golden Knights the lead for good.

''To work hard and just kind of give it away in the next shift is disappointing,'' Stars coach Ken Hitchcock said. ''It's an extremely disappointing loss.''

McNabb sent a wrist shot in off the crossbar from high in the left circle at 8:35.

''We came out pretty strong in this game,'' McNabb said, ''and Max played great. He won that game for us.''

NOTES: Vegas won the season series 2-1. ... Dallas LW Antoine Roussel returned after missing four games because of illness. ... The Stars were 0 for 3 on the power play, dropping to 2 for 42 over the last 13 games. ... The Golden Knights were 1 for 2 on the power play after going 1 for 18 in their previous six games. ... Haula has scored seven of his 53 career goals in 19 games vs. Dallas. ... Benn's goal ended a nine-game drought, his longest since October and November 2016. ''It doesn't mean anything if you don't win the game,'' he said.

UP NEXT

Golden Knights: Begin a five-game homestand Tuesday against Carolina.

Stars: Open a four-game East Coast trip Monday against the New York Rangers.

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