Knights erase 3-0 hole, stun Avs 5-3 for 3-0 series lead

The Vegas Golden Knights knew Colorado would be desperate. They said it before the game, then they lived it.

Vegas fell behind by three goals in the first period, lost a potential Pavel Dorofeyev power-play goal on a controversial review and gave up a shorthanded goal seconds later. Then the Golden Knights answered with the kind of comeback they had never pulled off before in the playoffs.

Vegas scored five unanswered goals Sunday at T-Mobile Arena, beating the Avalanche 5-3 in Game 3 of the Western Conference Final and taking a 3-0 series lead over the Presidents’ Trophy winners. The Golden Knights had been 0-9 all-time in playoff games when trailing by three goals, while Colorado had not lost three straight games in 170 games.

Both streaks ended in the Fortress.

First Period Goes Sideways

Colton Sissons warned before the game that Colorado would not go quietly.

“We know this is a desperate team coming in here, and we don’t take that lightly,” Sissons said. “Just staying in the moment, in the present, and really focusing on having a good start tonight.”

Vegas did not get one. Gabriel Landeskog scored at 3:21 of the first, Nazem Kadri made it 2-0 at 7:03 and Jack Drury added a shorthanded goal at 13:15. Colorado outshot Vegas 16-7 in the period and looked like a team determined to drag the series back to life.

However, the biggest swing came before Drury’s goal. Vegas appeared to cut the deficit to 2-1 on a Dorofeyev power-play chance near the crease, but the goal was waved off. Replays appeared to show the puck touching Dorofeyev’s stick before crossing the line, but officials ruled glove contact and let the no-goal call stand.

Moments later, Colorado scored shorthanded. Later in the period, Jack Eichel appeared to be tripped while driving toward the net on another Vegas power play, but no call came. The Golden Knights had their own problems, but the first period also came with two calls that did them no favors.

Stone Starts the Climb

Mark Stone returned after missing the previous five games, and Noah Hanifin said before puck drop that getting him back was “huge.”

“His talent speaks for itself, but just his character and leadership, to have him back in the room and get his voice back, it’s going to be huge for our team,” Hanifin said.

Stone made it huge 19 seconds into the second period. The captain scored on the power play off assists from Mitch Marner and Tomas Hertl, cutting Colorado’s lead to 3-1 and giving Vegas life before the second period could settle. The goal was also Stone’s 80th playoff point with Vegas, a franchise record.

William Karlsson followed at 4:05, scoring his first goal of the postseason off a Marner assist to make it 3-2. Then Keegan Kolesar finished the climb, tying it at 12:46 off assists from Dylan Coghlan and Kaedan Korczak.