Golden Knights slow down Wild, maintain lead in Pacific

LAS VEGAS --Laurent Brossoit made 29 saves for the Vegas Golden Knights, who maintained their lead in the Pacific Division with a 4-1 win against the Minnesota Wild at T-Mobile Arena on Saturday.

"Anytime you can get a few saves under your belt in the first period, it transfers through the rest of the game. It happened tonight," Brossoit said. "I want to be the guy. I'm just looking to keep performing like this and keep building and building."
Chandler Stephenson had a goal and an assist, and Jack Eichel had two assists for Vegas (47-22-7), which had lost two straight.
The Golden Knights remained two points ahead of the Edmonton Oilers for first in the Pacific. The Oilers won 6-0 against the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday.
"We stuck with our game," Eichel said. "Obviously, they came out and got that goal early, but we responded well. I thought we played a good 60 minutes. … We got some scoring and we played a good third period. It's two points. It's a big win."
Matt Boldy scored, and Marc-Andre Fleury made 39 saves for Minnesota (44-23-9), which had won three straight and had its six-game point streak end (5-0-1).

The Wild lead the Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars by one point for first place in the Central Division. The Avalanche, who defeated the Stars 5-2 on Saturday, have one game in hand.
"We had plenty of opportunities to score in this hockey game, but having said that, we didn't like our energy," Wild coach Dean Evason said. "It's a couple of different reasons. We believe a little letdown from Colorado (a 4-2 win on Wednesday), possibly, but maybe it's Vegas. But we didn't have the pop that we had for a while."
Boldy gave Minnesota a 1-0 lead at 5:00 of the first period when John Klingberg's slap shot from the right point deflected in off him.
Ben Hutton tied it 1-1 at 9:55 with a one-timer from the bottom of the left circle off a pass from Eichel during a 4-on-4.
"I was trying to stay positive and patient as long as I could," said Hutton, who has played in three of the past four games after not playing since Jan. 28. "I got the opportunity a few games back. I'm trying to make the most of it."
Hutton has three points (one goal, two assists) in the past two games with Shea Theodore (lower-body injury) out of the lineup.
"You're rooting for guys like that," Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said. "He's a popular guy in the room. He's low maintenance when he's not playing. You just have to check in and make sure he's mentally in a good place and don't lose that connect. In general, he practices hard when it's not his turn. He sees an opportunity as long as 'Theo's' out."
Zach Whitecloud gave Vegas a 2-1 lead at 16:13 of the first, beating Fleury glove side from along the left boards following a face-off win by Stephenson.

Brett Howden extended the lead to 3-1 at 2:21 of the second period, shooting glove side from the high slot off a backhand pass from Ivan Barbashev.
Stephenson scored an empty-net goal at 18:46 of the third period for the 4-1 final.
Vegas outshot Minnesota 21-4 in the third period. The two teams will play again in Minnesota on Monday.
"I'm sure they'll be bringing it. It's another big test for us," Eichel said. "They play well at home. They create a lot offensively. We're going to be ready to go and match their intensity."
NOTE:Wild forward Mason Shaw left in the first period with a lower-body injury. Evason said postgame they were still evaluating the injury.