Las Vegas is playing its eighth road game in the last nine games, meaning they have traveled before each of the last nine games and finished 3-3-3 in that game.
“Eight of the nine games were on the road and to be able to finish with probably the best game we’ve played in a long time and be able to finish it that way and go home for a few days, it feels good for us. ” Pietrangelo said. .
Andrei Kuzmenko scored and Thatcher Demko made 41 saves for the Canucks (15-8-1), who have won and lost seven straight games.
“It’s a learning lesson. They’ve lost three in a row and we knew they were coming at us,” coach Rick Tocchet said. “They’re good with the puck. There’s a reason they’re Stanley Cup champions. There’s a reason they’re good with the puck.”
Barbashev put Vegas up 1-0 at 4:46 of the first period on a wild stretch that started with a great save from Demko against Eichel. But Eichel got a loose puck under the goal line and chipped a backhand centering pass into the slot to Barbashev, who backhanded the pass through Demko’s legs while pushing to his right. .
“Nobody covered anybody,” Canucks forward JT Miller said. “Will, determination, those are things we have complete control over. When we’re playing well, we do it, but we tend to do it every now and then or every other night, and the results are showing.”
Eichel made it 2-0 with a 3-on-2 down low at 16:18. Nicola Hague was spinning in the slot when he chipped the puck off his skates to Barbashev, who was at Demko’s left post, and with one touch he sent the puck back over the crease for Eichel to tap in.
At 11:27 of the second period, William Karlsson received a pass from Eichel on the power play and hit a wrist shot from the right faceoff dot, low to the blocker side, to make it 3-0.
“Obviously it was a great start.” [Eichel’s] line,” William Carlson said. “We played with a two-goal lead and we had a chance to finish with another goal.” [assist] And on the power play, he had a great game. That entire line set the standard for us. ”
