Lawless: Hardest Work Still Ahead for Golden Knights

DALLAS - One wouldn't quite call it a theft. It was not a stolen game. But it was a win on an afternoon when the other team was better for large swaths of the game.

A late-game bit of wizardry from Jack Eichel and a Chandler Stephenson redemption goal for an OT victory gave the Vegas Golden Knights a 2-0 Western Conference Final series lead as the best-of-seven heads to Texas for Games 3 and 4.

Let's just put it out there: Vegas is two wins away from a berth in the Stanley Cup Final. But, as one high ranking VGK hockey person said on Monday morning: "We ain't won (blank) yet."

The games have been close and Dallas would be justified in feeling they could have come with at least a split.

Sunday's win was a reminder that nothing in pro sports is fair. Vegas played well enough to hang around and then some of its star players, Eichel, Jonathan Marchessault, Mark Stone and Stephenson made plays and left the Dallas Stars holding nothing for their efforts.

Dallas led 2-1 from the middle of the second period until Marchessault buried what Stars coach Pete DeBoer called a "world class pass," from Eichel to tie the game with 2:22 left in regulation.

Despite leading for such a long time, the Stars didn't threaten to extend and the final shot clock was 28 to 24 in favor of Dallas. The Stars were better but they didn't dominate.

DeBoer will be trying to sell hope leading into Game 3 and Vegas should expect to the Stars' best game on Tuesday night.

"Yesterday, I didn't think we're on top of our game," said VGK coach Bruce Cassidy. "The difference between yesterday and the losses we had earlier in the playoffs against other opponents is we were able to stick around for whatever reason. I think we recognized we weren't at our best, so let's not let it get too far away until we can get to our game if we can ever get to our game, right? Sometimes you don't. I thought we did in the third. We did a good job starting to get through and a little bit is that Dallas is probably not as aggressive. They're trying to protect a lead. But at the end of the day, now you're up two-nothing, and it's still one game at a time we've our goal is to, you know, get 11 wins next, right in the playoffs, and we're at 10. So let's focus on on that going into Dallas. They're going to be upset when they're that close and they don't win. So they're going to have a real sense of urgency going back there. So for us, it's one game at a time and get to our game in a hurry. I know it's cliche, but that's what it is this time of year, you got to get to your game, and stay at it longer. Early in my career, I remember my first playoff series ever I was in Washington and we're up two-nothing against Tampa and we lost the next four. So for me, I know how quickly it can change. And I'm sure our guys have been through some of those types of experiences. So for me, we've won nothing, you know, we've got a 2-0 lead. But as you said, we're halfway there. That's it. So we know we have to be a lot better because you need to get better throughout the series, or you don't advance.

A Hill to win on: Lots has been made all season about the lack of established goaltending in Vegas. The team, however, managed to win 51 regular season games and secure top seen in the Western Conference. Now they've won two playoff rounds with Laurent Brossoit and Adin Hill handling the crease duties.

Hill stepped in midway vs. the Edmonton Oilers and closed out that series. He's now won four straight starts including the first two against Dallas in the WCF. His numbers are sparkling.

Sv%: .930 (4th among goalies with 120+ mins, behind only Frederic Andersen, Igor Shesterkin and Sergei Bobrovsky)

5v5 SV%: .946 (3rd among goalies with 120+ mins, behind only Shesterkin and Bobrovsky)

Goals Saved Above Average: 5.1 (4th behind Bobrovsky, Andersen, Shesterkin)

Wildest Bill: William Karlsson has been dubbed Wild Bill. But playoff Karlsson is the Wildest Bill of them all.

In this postseason, Karlsson has been on the ice for 10 goals for and just five against at 5v5. The most common forwards he's played against at 5v5 are Connor McDavid, Kyle Connor and Pierre-Luc Dubois. McDavid had 0 goals on Karlsson in 28 minutes at 5v5. Connor and Dubois had 1 in 27 and 24 minutes.

In his career in the playoffs at 5v5, Karlsson has been a +4, +10, +3, +4, +10 and now +5. A total of +36. Since 2016, no player has a higher total goal differential at 5v5 in the playoffs.

His 40 5v5 points in the playoffs since 2017 ranks 6th behind only Ondrej Palat, Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point, Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen.

Rolling Stone: Vegas captain Mark Stone had a goal and an assist on Sunday to push his totals to six goals and 15 points in 13 playoff games. Stone is running at 3.46 points/60 at 5v5 which is the 2nd highest postseason mark of his career.

Stone sits 4th in playoff scoring at 5v5 points, 2nd in points/60 and 1st in assists/60 at 5v5 among players that made at least the 2nd round.

Jack attack: Eichel is tied with Stone on his team for the lead in points with six goals and nine assists. Since Game 1 of the Edmonton series, Eichel has been particularly dominant at 5v5 where he's been on the ice for one goal against and nine for his team.

Linemate Ivan Barbashev was asked about Eichel's play on Monday.

"The one thing I was really impressed about him is how well he plays defensively. You know, because I I've never seen him play quite a lot to be honest," said Barbashev. "But, you know, just since I came here, just seeing him playing every game, you know, like it's been special, you know, he's a big part of this team. And, you know, he's done a really good job. defensively and offensively."