The Golden Knights had a 3-0 lead, lost it and still found a way out of Delta Center with the win they needed most.
Vegas beat the Utah Mammoth 5-4 in overtime Monday, tying the first-round series 2-2 and avoiding a 3-1 hole. Shea Theodore ended it at 19:08 of overtime after an earlier Vegas goal was wiped out by an offside review.
“We started really well,” head coach John Tortorella said. “Lost ourselves for a bit. Momentum swung to their side, but we hung in there.”
That is the balance Vegas now carries: it can control stretches, but it can also lose them quickly.
The start Vegas needed
Vegas came out with pace and purpose. That has not always been the case in this series, but it showed early.
Pavel Dorofeyev opened the scoring at 1:12 after Ivan Barbashev and Jack Eichel worked the puck into space. The early goal gave Vegas control.
Later, the Knights flipped momentum again while short-handed. Mitch Marner forced a turnover and fed Brett Howden, who finished at 18:38 to make it 2-0.
Then, early in the second, Vegas extended the lead. Cole Smith tipped a Noah Hanifin shot at 3:26 for his first career playoff goal.
At 3-0, the game was on Vegas’ terms. However, that control did not last.
Utah flips the game
Utah did not need much to get back in. Instead, it leaned into the exact pressure points that have defined the series.
The Mammoth extended shifts, forced turnovers and turned broken clears into offense. Nick Schmaltz started the push at 8:04 of the second. Just 29 seconds later, Ian Cole made it 3-2.
Suddenly, the ice tilted. Vegas struggled to manage pucks through the neutral zone, Utah attacked quickly off those mistakes and the Knights spent more time defending than dictating.
That trend carried into the third. Michael Carcone tied the game at 1:45, and Clayton Keller gave Utah a 4-3 lead at 5:10.
For a stretch, it looked familiar. Vegas was chasing again.
Howden answers the moment
This time, the Knights responded before it slipped away.
Howden tied the game at 10:25 of the third with his second goal of the night. Hanifin put the puck toward the net, and Howden redirected it through traffic.
Howden finished with two goals and an assist. Meanwhile, Eichel had three assists, and Hanifin added two more.
“We stuck with it,” Howden said. “Getting pucks to the net… and it was obviously really nice to get the job done in overtime too.”
That net-front approach mattered. When Vegas kept it simple, it created chances. However, when it tried to force plays, Utah pushed the other way.
Carter Hart also held the line. He finished with 27 saves, including all nine he faced in overtime.
Winning it twice
Overtime captured the entire night.
Vegas controlled stretches and created pressure. Then it thought the game was over when Dorofeyev knocked in a loose puck during a scramble.
Moments later, the goal came off the board. Eichel was ruled offside on the entry.
“I thought we won it the first time,” Tortorella said. “I was in the coaches room pretty much celebrating. I was yelled back out that we’re not sure.”
That moment could have flipped the game again. Instead, the bench stayed steady.
“It didn’t waver anyone,” Theodore said. “We stuck with it.”
Utah pushed after the review, and Hart made key saves to keep Vegas alive. Then, late in overtime, the Knights broke through again.
Eichel worked the puck below the goal line and found Theodore in space. Theodore stepped into a one-timer and buried it for the winner.
The goal made him the first defenseman in Golden Knights history to score a playoff overtime winner. It also erased everything that came before it.
The lesson inside the win
Vegas got the result it needed. However, the path still matters.
The Knights showed they can control play early and generate offense off the forecheck. They also showed how quickly that can disappear with poor puck management.
Tortorella pointed to both sides.
“Going down in the third period, getting scored on twice and coming back and winning it,” he said, “that’s something we can lean on.”
At the same time, the swings are not sustainable. Utah has made a habit of turning small mistakes into momentum.
Vegas avoided the consequence in Game 4. It may not get that margin again.
Up next
The Golden Knights host the Utah Mammoth in Game 5 on Wednesday at T-Mobile Arena. Puck drop is 7 p.m. Pacific Time.
Related stories
Welcome to Dice City Sports — where we provide premium, exclusive, up-to-date news and analysis surrounding the Las Vegas sports scene. Follow along on social media, and check back for new articles daily!
Dice City Sports editor Mark Hebert covers the Vegas Golden Knights, Las Vegas Raiders, Athletics, and UNLV baseball and softball. He has 24 years of journalism experience, is also a senior reporter at Exhibit City News, and previously covered the Dallas Stars and Texas Rangers. Follow him on X or connect on LinkedIn.
