A five-goal second period paced the visiting Vegas Golden Knights to a 6-2 victory over the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday, Nov. 23. The Habs dropped to 0-5-2 over their last seven games against the Golden Knights. Outshot handily 28-17, they remain in last place in the Eastern Conference with a 7-11-2 record, upon hitting the 2024-25 season’s quarter mark.
Meanwhile, despite injuries to stars Alex Pietrangelo and Mark Stone, the Golden Knights maintained their reputation as one of the NHL’s top-scoring teams. They tallied five goals in a period for the third time in franchise history.
Related: Projected Lineups for the Golden Knights vs Canadiens – 11/23/24
Booed off the ice by the Bell Centre fans at the end of the second period, the Canadiens managed two goals in the third to earn back some semblance of respectability. However, Jack Eichel put an end to any thoughts of a miraculous comeback, closing out the scoring with his first goal, but third point of the night.
Golden Knights Score Three Goals in 2:17
Eichel also assisted on the Golden Knights’ second and third goals of the evening. Linemate Ivan Barbashev, who also scored a goal and two assists, earned the game-winning marker at 9:09 of the middle frame, while also assisting on 27-year-old journeyman Callahan Burke’s first career goal 51 seconds earlier.
Ex-Canadiens player Tanner Pearson, who got stopped by a Habs goalie Sam Montembeault’s pad in the first period, when the game was still scoreless, got a measure of revenge soon thereafter. He effectively put the game out of reach with his fourth of the season. Altogether, the Knights scored three goals in 2:17 to make the score 4-0.
Tomas Hertl had opened the scoring, while Keegan Kolesar rounded out the Golden Knights’ offensive output on the night, tucking a rebound off a Zach Whitecloud point shot in past Montembeault, which ended up chasing him from the net. The Canadiens turned to backup Cayden Primeau to start the third, during which they got goals from Emil Heineman and Jayden Struble. Montembeault ended the night with 20 saves on 25 shots. Counterpart Adin Hill turned aside 15 of 17 shots against in a battle of goalies in the mix to represent Canada in the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off Tournament.
In the middle of a five-game road trip, the Golden Knights next face the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday, Nov. 25. The Canadiens next play on the Tuesday, as they conclude their four-game homestand by hosting the Utah Hockey Club.
