3 takeaways from Knights win: ‘Clutch’ save leads to OT victory

Logan Thompson didn’t flinch. He read the shot the whole way and made the save of the night.

Jonathan Marchessault delivered two points for the Golden Knights 19 seconds later.

Marchessault scored his team-leading 39th goal 49 seconds into overtime to give the Knights a 2-1 victory over the St. Louis Blues at Enterprise Center on Monday. He wouldn’t have gotten that chance if Thompson didn’t make the play of the game.

Thompson stopped Blues forward Pavel Buchnevich on a penalty shot 30 seconds into overtime. Buchnevich fired glove side and Thompson came down on his back after catching the puck.

Thompson finished with 30 saves to reach 20 wins for the second straight season.

“I think the word is clutch,” center William Karlsson said. “That’s what we need from goalies this time of year.”

Thompson is playing great at the right time.

He’s won three straight starts to lead the Knights to their first three-game winning streak since Jan. 15-20. He’s allowed three goals in those wins.

Thompson’s heroics also helped the Knights (39-25-7) extend their lead to five points on the Blues for the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference.

They were five minutes away from making it a six-point cushion. St. Louis left wing Brandon Saad tied the game at 1-1 with 5:07 remaining in regulation.

“It was tough to let one in that late,” Karlsson said. “But (one point) is better than none.”

Left wing Pavel Dorofeyev also scored for the Knights, who earned their sixth win in eight games.

The star of the night was still Thompson. The penalty shot save was one of several crucial stops he made against the Blues.

Thompson denied Blues center Kevin Hayes on a breakaway with a left-pad save 3:24 into the third period. He also robbed St. Louis center Brayden Schenn on a deflection 4:19 later.

Thompson also had two saves in the opening minute. He stopped a point shot from defenseman Torey Krug and a rebound from right wing Alexey Toropchenko.

“Happy for Logan,” coach Bruce Cassidy said. “He battled hard in there, and he deserved it.”

The Blues had 14 shots in the third period but only one beat Thompson.

He outdueled St. Louis goaltender Jordan Binnington, who was also strong and finished with 32 saves.

“I thought it was a really well-goaltended game,” Cassidy said. “Both goalies gave their teams great chances to win. We were just one shot better.”

The celebration won’t last long. The Knights continue their road trip Tuesday against the red-hot Nashville Predators, who are 15-0-2 their last 17 games to set a franchise record for longest point streak.

Here are three takeaways from the win:

1. Karlsson’s linemates produce

Karlsson’s line scored again after Cassidy shook up the forward lines during Saturday’s 4-2 win against the Blue Jackets.

Dorofeyev scored for the second straight game. It’s the fourth time this season he’s scored in consecutive games.

Dorofeyev, 23, is one of four rookies who have accomplished that feat this season. The other four are Chicago’s Connor Bedard, Nashville’s Luke Evangelista and Columbus’ Adam Fantilli.

Right wing Anthony Mantha had the primary assist on Dorofeyev’s goal, giving him points in consecutive games for the first time since the Knights acquired him in a trade with the Washington Capitals on March 5.

2. Keeping pace with the Kings

The Los Angeles Kings handled their own business after the Knights held on.

The Kings defeated the Vancouver Canucks 3-2 on Monday to maintain their hold on third place in the Pacific Division.

Los Angeles is two points ahead of the Knights with an equal number of games played.

3. Pietrangelo expected back

Defenseman Alex Pietrangelo is expected to join the Knights during their road trip, according to the KMCC-34 broadcast.

Pietrangelo, who captained the Blues to a Stanley Cup championship in 2019, missed his fourth straight game Monday with an illness.

Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.