The first Battle of I-15 at T-Mobile Arena certainly turned into one Saturday night on The Strip.
And once again, the Utah Hockey Club came agonizingly close, but couldn’t finish the job.
Brett Howden scored the winner 2:15 into overtime, and the Vegas Golden Knights escaped with a hard-fought 4-3 victory against Utah to remain unbeaten at home.
“We got better every period,” head coach Andre Tourigny said. “Unfortunately, we couldn’t close the deal.”
It has been an all-too-familiar refrain for Utah (5-4-3), as they let a 2-0 lead slip away despite being outgunned on the offensive end all night long.
The club didn’t even register a shot on goal until Logan Cooley blasted one past Adin Hill nearly 11 minutes into the game, silencing the Vegas faithful.
Ian Cole then left The Fortress stunned with his first goal of the season after nine minutes of non-stop action in the second period to give Utah a 2-0 advantage.
That was when Vegas (8-3-1) woke up, tying it 2-2 with one second left in the period on Noah Hanifin’s goal.
William Karlsson put the Golden Knights in front six minutes into the third period before Alex Kerfoot answered with his second goal in two games to force the extra session.
Despite the result, Tourigny said he’s proud of the way the team grew into the game, and rightfully so.
Utah dished out 21 hits while holding the bigger, more physical Golden Knights to just 21, they won 27 face-offs, and committed only one minor penalty the entire game.
“We really had to work our way into the game,” Tourigny said. “We’re building; it’s a big point for us.”
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Related: Utah HC Gameday: Puck Drop Primer at Vegas
