Coyotes score 6 straight, rally from down 3 in 3rd to stun Golden Knights

TEMPE, Ariz. -- Michael Carcone scored the tying and go-ahead goals for the Arizona Coyotes, who rallied with six straight in the third period to defeat the Vegas Golden Knights 7-4 at Mullett Arena on Friday.

Alex Kerfoot had a goal and an assist, Josh Doan scored, and Clayton Keller and Nick Schmaltz each had two assists for the Coyotes (32-39-5), who trailed 4-1 entering the third after allowing four consecutive goals in the second period. Karel Vejmelka had 20 saves for Arizona, which had lost two in a row.

“You have to play a little looser when you’re the underdog in a game like that,” Coyotes defenseman Josh Brown said. “We stayed loose, we stuck with it, and we started getting pucks in and getting to work. They’re the defending Stanley Cup champions, and they’re a measuring stick for us.”

William Karlsson had a goal and an assist, Jack Eichel scored, and Shea Theodore had two assists for the Golden Knights (42-26-8), who had won three in a row and seven of nine (7-1-1). Logan Thompson made 25 saves.

“You can't expect to play maybe 30 minutes in this league and expect to beat anybody, but we did,” Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said. “And that’s what happened.”

The Golden Knights are five points behind the Edmonton Oilers for second place in the Pacific Division with six games remaining. The Oilers defeated the Colorado Avalanche 6-2 on Friday.

Vegas is also one point ahead of the Los Angeles Kings for third in the Pacific.

“It's April, [let’s] take care of business on the ice,” Cassidy said. “We’re not in the (Stanley Cup) Playoffs. This isn’t a game we can say, ‘Oh, well, it’s out the window. We’re looking forward to our (playoff) opponent.’ … So, let's take care of business.”

Doan, Nick Bjugstad and Carcone scored in a span of 1:07 to tie it 4-4 in the third, the fourth-fastest three goals in franchise history.

“We showed character, our guys showed we care a lot,” Arizona coach Andre Tourigny said. “I think it was great to make that comeback and have everybody contribute.”

Doan cut it to 4-2 at 8:19 on a wrist shot from the left face-off circle. It was his third goal in five NHL games.

Bjugstad made it 4-3 at 9:16 with a shot from the slot. Carcone scored 10 seconds later to tie it 4-4 at 9:26, on a one-timer from the left circle after Liam O'Brien forced a turnover.

“There was a stretch there where every shot went in, and we’ve got to stop the bleeding somewhere,” Cassidy said. “We called a timeout to hopefully at least slow it down; that didn’t do much, they scored 10 seconds later. They were opportunistic, and we paid the price.”

Alec Martinez appeared to give Vegas a 5-4 lead at 11:42, but Arizona successfully challenged for offside.

“This is a veteran group in there. … You’ve got to take care of business in the third period, it’s that simple,” Cassidy said. “Take care of the puck, [pay] attention to details, whether it’s line changes or discipline. Play winning hockey, it’s that simple.”

Carcone’s second goal then gave Arizona a 5-4 lead at 14:47. He scored with a wrist shot that deflected off Vegas defenseman Zach Whitecloud, a late addition to the lineup after Alex Pietrangelo became ill.

Brown extended it to 6-4 at 15:48 with Arizona’s fifth goal in six shots.

Logan Cooley scored an empty-net goal at 17:25 for the 7-4 final.

The Coyotes scored the fastest six goals in the third period (9:06 span) by any NHL team since Oct. 30, 1988, when the original Winnipeg Jets, now the Coyotes, did so in 8:14 against the Kings.

Kerfoot gave Arizona a 1-0 lead at 6:17 of the second period. Eichel responded at 7:39 to tie it 1-1, scoring off a Brayden McNabb rebound.

Karlsson gave Vegas a 2-1 lead at 11:08 off Brendan Brisson’s drop pass. Anthony Mantha extended it to 3-1 at 14:37, finishing a give-and-go with Karlsson on an odd-man rush.

Chandler Stephenson pushed it to 4-1 at 18:08, driving to the net from the right face-off circle.

Vegas also couldn’t hold a 4-1 lead in the third period of a 5-4 overtime loss to the Nashville Predators on March 26.

“We’ve got to find a way to not collapse like we have, because it's only going to be more intense in the playoffs,” Karlsson said. “Once we get there.”

NOTES: Arizona’s six-goal period matched a franchise record last achieved in the first period against Nashville on March 28, 2013. … Keller has 16 points (seven goals, nine assists) during a 10-game point streak. … Karlsson has nine points (three goals, six assists) during a six-game point streak.