Thompson savoring 1st playoff experience with Golden Knights

DALLAS -- Logan Thompson is doing exactly what Vegas Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy said to do.

One season after he helped the Golden Knights advance to the Stanley Cup Playoffs but was unable to play because of injury, Thompson is making up for lost time.

"I don't discuss a lot of technical stuff with the goalie, etc," Cassidy said. "With Logan, it was basically 'Hey, enjoy your moment, everyone gets to play their first playoff game. This is your time. You didn't get to go through it last year as an active player because of injury. So enjoy it'. Secondly, if something bad happens, and what I mean by that, is if a goal goes in, and they will sooner or later, you've got to really focus on moving on from it. Because in the playoffs it can snowball in a hurry."

Thompson was 21-13-3 with a 2.65 goals-against average and .915 save percentage in 37 games (36 starts) for Vegas last season, but did not play after March 23 because of a lower-body injury. Vegas went on to win the Stanley Cup.

He started his first two NHL playoff games in Games 1 and 2 of the Western Conference First Round against the Dallas Stars, making 26 saves in a 4-3 win in Game 1, but allowed a few goals he would have liked to have back, such as the third goal that snuck underneath his glove. 

In Game 2, a 3-1 win, he saved 20 shots, including plenty of game-saving ones at timely moments.

"The first game was a little too close for my liking," Thompson said after Game 2 on Wednesday. "Today, I settled in there and felt good. It's fun, but it's definitely not over. We've just got to regroup and refocus and get ready for Game 3."

Thompson received votes of confidence from his teammates, as many have credited his performances as one of the reasons why the Golden Knights are leaving Dallas with a 2-0 lead in the best-of-7 series.

Game 3 is at T-Mobile Arena in Vegas on Saturday (10:30 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, MAX, truTV, TBS, BSSW, SN360, SN, TVAS).

"He was amazing. It doesn't surprise me because we see it on a daily basis in practice as players," Vegas forward Keegan Kolesar said. "We have two great goaltenders coached by an unbelievable man himself (goalie coach Sean Burke), and it's awesome to see all their hard work they are putting in is paying off."

Defensively, the Golden Knights are doing what they can to help Thomspon ease into the playoff atmosphere. They have blocked 35 shots and have done an excellent job at preventing the Stars from getting into the high-danger areas. 

It's a staple of Cassidy's system that the Golden Knights are executing to perfection.

"We've done it all year, and we did it last year," Thompson said. "That's just the experience of our group coming through – shutting them down and keeping them on the outside and making my life a lot easier.

"I'm used to it by now. It's been two years now with this group. So I think my first year was a little hectic, but now I completely trust my forward group and my 'D' group in front of me, so I'm really comfortable. The team's clicking when they get in front of every puck, and we battle for each other."