The Vegas Golden Knights knew Colorado would be desperate. They said it before the game, then they lived it.
Vegas fell behind by three goals in the first period, lost a potential Pavel Dorofeyev power-play goal on a controversial review and gave up a shorthanded goal seconds later. Then the Golden Knights answered with the kind of comeback they had never pulled off before in the playoffs.
Vegas scored five unanswered goals Sunday at T-Mobile Arena, beating the Avalanche 5-3 in Game 3 of the Western Conference Final and taking a 3-0 series lead over the Presidents’ Trophy winners. The Golden Knights had been 0-9 all-time in playoff games when trailing by three goals, while Colorado had not lost three straight games in 170 games.
Both streaks ended in the Fortress.
First Period Goes Sideways
Colton Sissons warned before the game that Colorado would not go quietly.
“We know this is a desperate team coming in here, and we don’t take that lightly,” Sissons said. “Just staying in the moment, in the present, and really focusing on having a good start tonight.”
Vegas did not get one. Gabriel Landeskog scored at 3:21 of the first, Nazem Kadri made it 2-0 at 7:03 and Jack Drury added a shorthanded goal at 13:15. Colorado outshot Vegas 16-7 in the period and looked like a team determined to drag the series back to life.
However, the biggest swing came before Drury’s goal. Vegas appeared to cut the deficit to 2-1 on a Dorofeyev power-play chance near the crease, but the goal was waved off. Replays appeared to show the puck touching Dorofeyev’s stick before crossing the line, but officials ruled glove contact and let the no-goal call stand.
Moments later, Colorado scored shorthanded. Later in the period, Jack Eichel appeared to be tripped while driving toward the net on another Vegas power play, but no call came. The Golden Knights had their own problems, but the first period also came with two calls that did them no favors.
Stone Starts the Climb
Mark Stone returned after missing the previous five games, and Noah Hanifin said before puck drop that getting him back was “huge.”
“His talent speaks for itself, but just his character and leadership, to have him back in the room and get his voice back, it’s going to be huge for our team,” Hanifin said.
Stone made it huge 19 seconds into the second period. The captain scored on the power play off assists from Mitch Marner and Tomas Hertl, cutting Colorado’s lead to 3-1 and giving Vegas life before the second period could settle. The goal was also Stone’s 80th playoff point with Vegas, a franchise record.
William Karlsson followed at 4:05, scoring his first goal of the postseason off a Marner assist to make it 3-2. Then Keegan Kolesar finished the climb, tying it at 12:46 off assists from Dylan Coghlan and Kaedan Korczak.
Kolesar had said before the game that Vegas was not going to “let off the gas.” His first goal of the playoffs turned a 3-0 hole into a 3-3 game and brought the building fully back to life.
Vegas did not dominate the shot clock. Colorado still led 28-15 in shots after two periods. But the Golden Knights made their eight second-period shots count.
Hertl Finishes the Comeback
Tomas Hertl completed the turnaround at 8:21 of the third. Korczak helped spring the play, Stone picked up his second point of the night, and Hertl finished with a backhand to give Vegas its first lead, 4-3.
That goal did more than put the Golden Knights ahead. It flipped the entire series into something close to crisis for Colorado.
The Avalanche pushed, but Vegas tightened the game. The Golden Knights killed a Colorado power play without allowing a shot on goal and, at one point, held the Avalanche without a shot for roughly 10 minutes in the third.
Carter Hart had been under siege early, but he settled after the first period. Hart stopped all 17 shots he faced over the final two periods and finished with 30 saves on 33 shots.
Howden Seals a Historic Night
Colorado pulled Scott Wedgewood late, but Brett Howden ended it with 59 seconds left, scoring into the empty net off assists from Karlsson and Shea Theodore. It was Howden’s 10th goal of the postseason, tying Dorofeyev for the NHL playoff lead.
The goal sealed one of the biggest comeback wins in Golden Knights playoff history. Vegas had never won a postseason game after trailing by three goals, and it did so against a Colorado team that had not lost three straight in 170 games.
The series now sits on the edge of stunning. Vegas leads 3-0, with Game 4 set for Tuesday at T-Mobile Arena. Colorado came into the night desperate and, for one period, played that way.
Then the Golden Knights took the game back.
Up Next
Colorado faces elimination Tuesday night at T-Mobile Arena, where the Golden Knights will try to complete the sweep and punch their ticket to the Stanley Cup Final.
The Avalanche enter Game 4 at 8-3 this postseason, while Vegas enters at 10-4 with a 3-0 lead in the Western Conference Final. Puck drop is scheduled for 6 p.m. PT on May 26, and the game will air on ESPN.
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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.
