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the turning point of the series so far |
James Neal had the puck on his stick and was staring at an open net. In a can’t-miss situation Courtland Sutton Broncos Jersey , that’s exactly what he did.
Poised to give the Vegas Golden Knights the opening goal in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final, the veteran leader of this upstart expansion team hit the right post . Ping! The puck skipped behind Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby and slithered harmlessly toward the back boards.
”You want those chances. Nine times out of 10 you probably put that in the back of the net,” Neal said. ”I had the composure to wait. And then you shoot it and you’re like, `Oh!”’
The Golden Knights, a team in desperate need of a boost of confidence, collectively shrugged as a golden opportunity slipped away.
”It definitely would have changed the outcome of the game and would have given us momentum,” said right wing Alex Tuch, who knows a thing or two about being coming up empty on a close-in shot.
Not surprisingly, the Golden Knights sputtered the rest of the way Monday night in a 6-2 defeat that put them on the brink of elimination. Washington is up 3-1 and can win its first Stanley Cup on Thursday night in Las Vegas.
”Go home, win one game and the pressure is on them,” Neal said, hopefully.
Although the Capitals have blown many a playoff series in the past, only one team Authentic Tarvarius Moore Jersey , the 1942 Detroit Red Wings, has lost the Stanley Cup Final after holding a 3-1 lead.
”Not where we want to be, that’s for sure,” Vegas goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury said. ”But we have a good bunch of guys with a lot of character in the room. Nobody’s quitting.”
Barring a comeback of historic proportions – an unlikely occurrence after being outscored 12-5 over the past three games – the Golden Knights will always remember this series for ”The Stick” and ”The Post.”
”The Stick” was wielded by Holtby , who used it late in Game 2 to snuff a seemingly sure goal by Tuch in a 3-2 Washington victory. ”The Post” is a symbol of the frustration Vegas has experienced in this series after winning 12 of 15 in roaring to the Western Conference title.
Who knows if things would have been different on Monday night if Neal put the puck in the net?
This much is certain: The reeling Golden Knights were looking for something, anything, to build on when they entered Game 4, and a 1-0 lead would have been splendid. Presented with a power play in a scoreless first period, Vegas worked the puck around smartly in the Washington zone. Then, Erik Haula whisked a cross-ice pass to Neal on the left side of the net, and Holtby was slow to react.
”We obviously got some breaks at the start of the game,” the goaltender said. ”Honestly, I thought it was in. Somehow Authentic Customized Bears Jerseys , it didn’t go in.”
Said Neal: ”It’s not like anyone made a save. I shot it off the post on the far side. It’s done with. It’s not the first time it’s happened. Probably won’t be the last. But at this stage, at that moment, it changes the game.”
The Capitals rattled off three straight goals before the period ended to take full control.
Game over. On to the next one for the Golden Knights, who face elimination for the first time during the playoffs.
”You can’t feel sorry for yourself. You’ve got to win a game at home,” Neal said. ”That’s what we’ll focus on. I like the way we played. You’ve got to take the positives.”
Coach Gerard Gallant insisted: ”Tonight’s game was a step forward. Obviously, though, we have no more room for error.”
The Golden Knights could use a little luck. Tuch and Brayden McNabb both lined shots off the post after Neal, who scored with just under 16 minutes left to make it 4-1.
But the outcome by then was all but decided.
The Golden Knights have struggled to generate offense against the tenacious Washington defense, and Fleury has not been as sharp as he was in Vegas’ three previous series. He gave up six goals on 23 shots as Vegas dropped its third straight game.
”Obviously, when you’re a goalie, you don’t want to get scored on,” Fleury said. ”There was a lot of that tonight. It’s never a good feeling.”
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More Stanley Cup coverage:
LAS VEGAS — In a perfect world, the ideal ending to the storybook season of the expansion Vegas Golden Knights ends with the Stanley Cup being the main attraction during a victory parade down the famed Las Vegas Strip.
That may still happen but it will take another pinch-me moment in a season full of them for the self-proclaimed “Golden Misfits.”
Vegas enters Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final with the Washington Capitals on Thursday night at T-Mobile Arena trailing the best-of-seven series 3-1 and will need to win three games in a row to hoist hockey’s most coveted piece of silverware.
But Vegas Chargers Authentic Jerseys , which has already put together two five-game win streaks in the playoffs, has thrived in the underdog role in its debut season.
“It shows that you can do it,” Golden Knights coach Gerard Gallant said. “We’ve done it against good hockey teams. Play our game, you get some breaks, and you keep working hard and hopefully it turns for us.”
“A lot of people didn’t think we would win that many games this year or make it to the playoffs, and we find ourselves here,” forward James Neal said after practice on Wednesday. “So I think for sure we have the ability to prove people wrong. We’ve done that all year.”
The Golden Knights have lost three in a row to Alex Ovechkin and company, including an ugly 6-2 loss on Monday night at Capital One Arena. Vegas has never lost four games in a row in its brief history.
“I think we have great character in this room and we’ve shown it all season long,” Golden Knights goalie Marc-Andre Fleury said. “We’ll be ready for Game 5.”
Vegas is 7-2 on its home ice during the playoffs but lost 3-2 on May 30 in its last game there. That contest featured a remarkable game-saving, diving stick save by Washington goalie Braden Holtby on Alex Tuch in front of a wide-open net that ranks as the turning point of the series so far.
Washington is 9-3 on the road in the playoffs, just one off the NHL record of 10 road wins accomplished four times, most recently by the Los Angeles Kings in 2012. Over 70,000 people tried to get tickets to attend a Game 5 watch party at Capital One Arena with the hopes that they’ll see the Capitals clinch their first Stanley Cup.
“It feels nice but it’s not over yet Robert Golden Jersey Elite ,” Ovechkin, who has 14 goals and 12 assists in the playoffs, said of needing just one more victory to win the Stanley Cup. “I don’t think it’s pressure on us. I think it’s pressure on both teams the same way. We just have to manage it. We have to concentrate, and we have to play our best to get it done.”
Washington coach Barry Trotz agreed.
“You just focus on the next game,” he said. “I can’t tell you what’s going to happen (Thursday night) but I can tell you that you’re going to need your best game if you want to get it done.”
Neal made it clear the Golden Knights still believe that they can win the series.
“We know we haven’t played our game (in) the first four games,” Neal said. “We have a lot more to give for sure. We’ve got to take it one game at a time. We can’t win all three games in Game 5. We’ve got to come out strong, take it period by period, and just focus on it one minute at a time.”
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