Jack Eichel on Sunday scored his first goal since joining Vegas as the Golden Knights beat the San Jose Sharks for the 10th straight time with a 4-1 win.
Eichel’s goal came in his third game back from artificial disk replacement surgery on his neck in November last year as he finished off a nifty give-and-go with Chandler Stephenson.
It was his first goal since Jan. 28 last year with Buffalo.
Photo: Darren Yamashita-USA Today
“It’s obviously been a long time since I scored a goal, so it’s a good feeling,” Eichel said. “It’s just part of my game. Obviously, I want to try to chip in offensively, so it’s good to help contribute tonight.”
Vegas acquired Eichel in a deal with the Sabres on Nov. 4 and he underwent the surgery the following week. He began practicing last month and made his debut on Wednesday last week.
He has a goal and two assists in three games.
“I’m not surprised because he’s a special player,” Vegas coach Peter DeBoer said. “If he wasn’t such a special player, I think it probably would have taken longer, but he’s got such exceptional skill that I think it allows him to get back up to pace quicker.”
Eichel’s goal helped snap Vegas’ three-game winless streak and gave Logan Thompson the win in his second career start in goal.
Thompson, who lost his first start last month against Nashville, made 35 saves.
Keegan Kolesar and Max Pacioretty also scored, while Stephenson added an empty-netter as the Golden Knights maintained their dominance of the Sharks.
Eichel assisted on Pacioretty’s goal early in the second period.
“We know [what] he’s capable of doing offensively,” Vegas defenseman Alex Pietrangelo said. “Jack’s one of those players that when you watch him and he plays, he makes the people around him better.”
Vegas won all eight meetings against San Jose last season and they have not lost to the Sharks since Nov. 21, 2019, at home.
The Golden Knights also have not lost in San Jose since blowing a three-goal lead in the third period of Game 7 in the first round of the 2019 playoffs.
Nick Bonino scored the lone goal for the Sharks, who are winless in their past six games. James Reimer made 31 saves.
“There’s a bunch of [the] season left, but not a ton,” Bonino said. “Lose these games and you run out of time.”
“We’re getting scored on first and then they’re getting the second one,” Sharks captain Logan Couture said. “That’s the main thing when you give a team a two-goal lead early in games. In this league, I know comebacks happen, but teams are very good at protecting the lead.”
Elsewhere, the Hurricanes beat the Penguins 4-3, the Panthers downed the Blackhawks 5-2, the Coyotes outshone the Stars 3-1, the Rangers edged the Senators 2-1, the Blue Jackets spanked the Sabres 7-3, the Wild walloped the Oilers 7-3 and the Canadiens defeated the Islanders 3-2 in a shoot-out.
Additional reporting by staff writer
Bologna on Thursday advanced past Empoli to reach their first Coppa Italia final in more than half a century. Thijs Dallinga’s 87th-minute header earned Bologna a 2-1 win and his side advanced 5-1 on aggregate. Giovanni Fabbian opened the scoring for Bologna with a header seven minutes in. Then Viktor Kovalenko equalized for Empoli in the 30th minute by turning in a rebound to finish off a counterattack. Bologna won the first leg 3-0. In the May 14 final in Rome, Bologna are to face AC Milan, who eliminated city rivals Inter 4-1 on aggregate following a 3-0 win on Wednesday. Bologna last reached the
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
From a commemorative jersey to a stadium in his name, Argentine soccer organizers are planning a slew of tributes to their late “Captain” Pope Francis, eulogized as the ultimate team player. Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with soccer metaphors in his homeland. “Francisco. What a player,” the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) said, describing the first pope from Latin America and the southern hemisphere as a generational talent who “never hogged the ball” and who showed the world “the importance of having an Argentine captain,
Noelvi Marte on Sunday had seven RBIs and hit his first career grand slam with a drive off infielder Jorge Mateo, while Austin Wynn had a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds scored their most runs in 26 years in a 24-2 rout of the Baltimore Orioles. Marte finished with five hits, including his eighth-inning homer off Mateo. Wynn hit a three-run homer in the ninth off catcher Gary Sanchez. Cincinnati scored its most runs since a 24-12 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 19, 1999, and finished with 25 hits. Baltimore allowed its most runs since a 30-3 loss to
RSS