LAS VEGAS -- Golden Knights center William Karlsson skated down the right side of the ice and without hesitation, with defenders around, fired a ridiculous backhanded pass to hard-charging Reilly Smith as he approached the net.

It was the type of play that reminiscent of what Golden Knights fans were used to seeing during the team's first six years of existence. If only Boston Bruins goalie Jeremy Swayman wasn't there to stonewall Smith, a raucous crowd of 18,225 would have lost it to see two of their favorite original misfits connect for a goal after skating together for the first time since Smith's return.

After the Knights won the Stanley Cup in 2023, Smith was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Last offseason he was traded to the New York Rangers.

Smith was reacquired by the Golden Knights earlier this month, just before the deadline, and Karlsson returned to the lineup for Thursday night's 5-1 win over the Bruins.

"Yeah, one thing I did well there on that shift, especially that pass to Reilly," said Karlsson, who had an assist and played 20 shifts for a total of 15:57 on the ice. "I had a lot of speed on my boots. Too bad it wasn't meant to be."

Vegas goal!

Scored by Brett Howden with 14:13 remaining in the 3rd period.

Assisted by William Karlsson.

Vegas: 3
Boston: 0#BOSvsVGK#VegasBorn#NHLBruinspic.twitter.com/d9FVuEB5ea

— NHL Goals (@nhl_goal_bot) March 21, 2025

Karlsson said he'd like to work on his sharpness, but was otherwise pleased with his speed and ability to see the ice and play in all facets of the game.

"Pretty good, pretty good," Karlsson said. "Good to be back out there with the fellas and the body felt pretty good, so can't complain. I think I adjusted pretty quick. I didn't feel like it was super fast out there, and it felt like it usually is."

Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy agreed.

"I figured his pace would be there," Cassidy said. "That's why he missed time, to correct some of that. And I think he's feeling really good, his body and his legs and that part of it. It's the rust of playing with people around you. It's hard to get that, especially this time of year, we're not practicing that much. So I liked his game a lot, thought he did some good things ... grabbing pucks down low in our end, playing good defense and being in the right spot. I think he made a couple plays to Smitty, good on the kill, power play."

One area Cassidy said Karlsson will benefit over the others is the excitement of wanting to be back on the ice, while others may be feeling normal end-of-the-season fatigue.

"(He) does have a little bit of catching up to do, but you know, sometimes that's not a bad thing," Cassidy added. "He's excited to play, where other guys have played a lot and ... it's the mental grind. He doesn't at least have to go through that. It's the excitement of being back in the lineup. So you know, there's always a positive to it."

AROUND THE BEAT

From The Hockey News' Julian Gaudio: Golden Knights' Pavel Dorofeyev Records A Hat Trick As He Hits The 30-Goal Mark

From Sin Bin Vegas' Ken Boehlke: Karlsson’s Return Offers First Look At Post-Deadline Healthy Forward Lines

From The Athletic's Jesse Granger: Alex Ovechkin 7 goals from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s record after scoring vs. Flyers

From Las Vegas Review-Journal's Danny Webster: Golden Knights’ consistent star continues chase for 100-point season

From Las Vegas Sun's Jack Williams: Golden Knights always believed in Dorofeyev's offensive potential

FORMER KNIGHTS

Logan Thompson appears to have regained his winning touch for the Capitals, after a brief lull. Thompson is 5-0-0 since March 3, with a 2.36 goals-against average and .907 save percentage. The undefeated streak follows a 2-2-2 showing from Feb. 1 through March 1.

Jonathan Marchessault goes into the final several weeks of the season looking for a spark, as he's got just one goal and three assists over his last 13 games for the Predators. The Golden Knights visit Nashville on March 29.

Erik Haula had a goal for the Devils in Thursday's 5-3 home loss to the Flames. It was just his seventh goal of the season. Haula had 16 goals last season, and 14 the year before, his first in New Jersey.

LAS VEGAS - The Golden Knights returned home from what turned into a disappointing road trip and was fueled by Pavel Dorofeyev's three-goal game to defeat the Boston Bruins, 5-1.

Brett Howden and Ivan Barbashev added goals for Vegas, while goaltender Adin Hill made 18 saves.

The Pacific Division-leading Golden Knights moved three points in front of the Edmonton Oilers, who lost in overtime to the Winnipeg Jets earlier in the night.

Hill was on the brink of his fifth shutout this season until Morgan Geekie scored for Boston with 2:11 left in the game.

Here are three takeaways from the game:

WILD BILL IS BACK: After missing two months with a lower-body injury, center William Karlsson returned to the lineup and was reunited with fellow original misfit Reilly Smith. It was the first time they've skated together since Smith was reacquired just before the deadline.

"I think I adjusted pretty quick," said Karlsson, who had an assist and played 20 shifts for a total of 15:57 on the ice. "I didn't feel like it was super fast out there, and it felt like it usually is."

DOROFEYEV'S HATTIE: Dorofeyev's hat trick was his second this season, as he also had one in a 5-3 loss at Nashville on Jan. 14. The 24-year-old, who was drafted 79th overall by the Knights in 2019, leads the team with 30 goals. He now has six goals in the team's last five games.

"We always knew that he had the goal-scoring in him," Karlsson said. "I think he's just playing a solid 200-foot game, and then he adds all his scoring on top of that. And just mature, mature guy. He's grown a lot this year."

INJURY UPDATE: Late in the second period Jack Eichel stood tall to block a shot, but immediately limped to the bench and down the tunnel. Eichel would later return to the bench and played in the third period, but he was seen in the locker room after the game limping badly. Asked if he was okay, Eichel promptly replied: "Yep!" The team is off Friday, will hold a morning skate on Saturday and then plays back-to-back games against the Detroit Red Wings and Tampa Bay Lightning on Sunday. Eichel will be someone to watch, in the event he may need to sit one of the two games, if not both.

It's coming down to the wire in the Western Conference.

Four teams are separated by just four points in the hunt for the final wild-card spot, and the situation changes daily. As of Friday, the St. Louis Blues hold the final playoff spot in the west, thanks in large part to two former Edmonton Oilers: Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg.

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We've written ad nauseam about the Blues' breakout stars here at The Hockey News this season, but they keep giving us reasons to come back to the well. Most recently, the pair came up huge in the biggest game of St. Louis' season, a 4-3 win over the Vancouver Canucks that vaulted them into the playoff spot they currently occupy.

Tied with Vancouver coming into the night, the Blues were riding a hot streak and trying to fend off the Canucks, Calgary Flames, and Utah Hockey Club in search of a playoff spot. Down 2-1 in the third period, St. Louis scored two goals in 24 seconds to flip the game on its head and take the lead. Who scored the go-ahead goal? Holloway, of course:

THIS PLACE IS ROCKIN' pic.twitter.com/Y8hYRIz6PX

— St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues) March 21, 2025

"It reminds you of [Teemu] Selanne and [Paul] Kariya," Blues head coach Jim Montgomery said of Holloway and linemate Jordan Kyrou after the game. "They just used to burn to each post and make great backdoor plays."

High praise, indeed. 

"That's a helluva compliment," Holloway said in response. "Those guys are legends, so I'll take that."

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The drama wasn't over in St. Louis, however. Vancouver's Brock Boeser spoiled the party with a huge game-tying goal with just two seconds remaining in regulation, setting up overtime to decide which team would sit inside the playoff picture. 

Though Vancouver could salvage a point, they couldn't complete the comeback. Of course, it had to be Philip Broberg who played the hero, beating Kevin Lankinen with a slick move to put the Blues in a playoff spot for the first time since November 6th. 

THE BLUES ARE BACK IN A #STANLEYCUP PLAYOFFS SPOT!! 👏

The @StLouisBlues pick up a crucial extra point thanks to Philip Broberg's @Energizer OT winner! pic.twitter.com/XSMlAYZMtg

— NHL (@NHL) March 21, 2025

The goal was Broberg's seventh, bringing his point total up to 22 for the year. Holloway assisted on the game-winner--of course--giving him 23 goals and 56 points this season, tied with Robert Thomas for second on the Blues. 

For comparison's sake--or to twist the knife on Oilers fans--Holloway's 56 points would be third on the Oilers, while Broberg's 22 points are more than Trent Frederic, who the Oilers acquired in exchange for the pick they got in compensation for Broberg leaving, has scored this season in exactly as many games.

While it's impossible to know how Holloway and Broberg would have fared had they stayed in Edmonton, it's hard not to look at their success in St. Louis and wonder what might have been.

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The Vegas Golden Knights ran the Boston Bruins out of T-Mobile Arena last night, and it was headlined by Russian forward Pavel Dorofeyev. 

Dorofeyev got the scoring started for the Golden Knights, recording his 28th goal of the season and his 12th on the power play. As time was set to expire in the second period, Dorofeyev added another, extending the lead to 2-0.

Brett Howden made it 3-0 before Dorofeyev scored his third of the night, recording his first career hat trick and reaching the 30-goal mark for the first time in his career.

Pavel Dorofeyev's third of the game is his 30th of the season! 👏

Hat Trick Challenge presented by @AstraZenecaUSpic.twitter.com/eWdfFDDsqX

— NHL (@NHL) March 21, 2025

The 24-year-old has played parts of four seasons with the Golden Knights, recording just two games in the 2021-22 season and 18 in the 2022-23 season. He showed flashes of offensive ability but never received consistent ice time. In his rookie campaign last year, he scored 13 goals and 24 points in 47 games, still unable to maintain a nightly roster spot. 

Fast forward to the 2024-25 season, Dorofeyev has taken full advantage of offseason departures and has formed a formidable duo with Tomas Hertl.

The pair of forwards are big and strong around the front of the net, both possessing heavy shots capable of beating goaltenders.  Dorofeyev has also become an improved scorer due to the power play opportunities. His size and shot allow him to be effective in the bumper or on the half-wall. Playing with star playmakers like Jack Eichel and Mark Stone helps showcase his skill set. 

"He's put the work, he put in a lot of work in this summer, and he's progressively gotten better through our organization," said HC Bruce Cassidy about Dorofeyev. "He's earned it. He's done a lot of the right things... he's doing things that will lend itself to success in any environment. That's what I like about his game."

The third-round pick (79th overall) in the 2019 NHL Draft not only leads the Golden Knights in goals but is tied in power play goals and ranks fifth in points.

He's among the NHL's most improved players and is poised to be a key contributor in what Vegas hope will be a long playoff run. 

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The Anaheim Ducks embarked on a three-game road trip to face the St. Louis Blues, Dallas Stars, and Nashville Predators, three teams sitting in vastly different positions in the Western Conference Standings. The Ducks entered the trip with a 29-30-7 record and came away with a 1-1-1 result.

Game #67: Ducks vs. Blues Gameday Preview

St. Louis was fighting for their playoff lives as a bubble wild card team in the West and thoroughly outplayed Anaheim for the entire 60 minutes of their game on Sunday and came away with a result of 7-2.

Game #68: Ducks vs. Stars Gameday Preview

The Ducks responded well against a Stanley Cup hopeful in the form of the Dallas Stars. They were outplayed again in the first period but were advantageous in the second period and entered the third with a 3-2 lead. Dallas was able to tie it up and, ultimately, win in overtime 4-3.

Game #69: Ducks vs. Predators Gameday Preview

Thursday’s game in Nashville was one of the Ducks’ better 60-minute efforts in the 2024-25 season. They were dictating tempo from the opening puck drop and came away with a 4-1 win over an underachieving team at the bottom of the NHL standings.

Lukas Dostal got the first two starts against the Blues and Stars. He was pulled after the second period of the Blues game. He saved 36 of 45 shots in five periods in the Ducks’ crease.

Ville Husso entered in relief of Dostal for the third period against St. Louis and saved 10 of 12 shots.

John Gibson returned from injury to face the Preds. He was sensational, stopping 33 of 34 shots.

Ducks head coach Greg Cronin tinkered with lines a bit throughout the road trip, both out of necessity, as Nikita Nesterenko was forced out of the Nashville game with illness, and in an attempt to generate offense with new combinations. Cutter Gauthier ended the trip on the wing of Leo Carlsson (where he started the season) and opposite Alex Killorn. Trevor Zegras finished on the wing of Mason McTavish, also in the position where he started the season.

Here are my on-ice notes from these games:

Cycle-The Ducks have been relying on crowding the home plate area of the offensive zone in attempts to generate offense, taking away goaltenders’ eyes and hoping for positive bounces. As a result, they’ve been one of the poorest offensive teams at 5v5 in 2024-25.

They seemed to make some adjustments as the road trip wore on, and in the Nashville game, they were more reliant on perimeter movement, defensemen activating, and cuts into the slot area for needed traffic. They were able to dictate possession time and create more dangerous opportunities. They can strike up a potent balance between rush and cycle offense and attack in a myriad of ways if they continue with this philosophy.

Power Play-The Ducks’ power play went just 1-10 on the trip, but they experimented with a variety of structures when they set up. They seemed to mandate more movement on and off the puck with Carlsson and Zegras’ unit and utilized the area below the goal line more frequently.

Troy Terry may have been the largest benefactor of this new scheme, as he had been too keen to rip distance shots from the flank. He now can keep his feet moving more and utilize his natural manipulation and deception abilities to create far more dangerous looks. The next phase of his evolution will be to increase his effectiveness as a net-front presence, timing cuts and getting tips on perimeter shots.

Regroups/Breakouts-The Ducks did well in the latter two games to absorb oncoming forechecks and defensemen did well to handle opposing high-flips out of the defensive zone to maintain possession and quickly move pucks back up ice to generate rush chances.

The Ducks began to utilize a low, swinging forward to better support retrieving defensemen and activated weak-side defensemen to join rushes. This spread the ice out more and ignited more dangerous rush looks.

The Ducks will now return home to Anaheim for a five-game home stand where they will look to return their record to at least that of a .500 team.

Gulls’ Blue Line Strengthened by Addition of Three Prospects

Leo Carlsson's Scorching Pace Down the Stretch of the Season

Bruins hit new low as offense struggles in ugly loss to Golden Knights originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

There are only 25 days left in the 2024-25 NHL regular season, but for Boston Bruins fans, this stretch might feel like an eternity.

It’s one thing to lose games on a consistent basis. It’s another to lose games and look inept at both ends of the ice. Unfortunately for the Bruins, their current situation is more the latter.

In what has been a very disappointing season for the Bruins, the team sunk to a new low in Thursday night’s ugly 5-1 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on the road.

The Bruins tallied just 19 shots against the Golden Knights despite trailing most of the night. It’s the second time in the last three games Boston has been held below 20 shots. Overall, the B’s have registered fewer than 20 shots in nine games this season. That happened only four times in the previous four seasons combined.

Right now, Boston’s offense is pretty much David Pastrnak or Morgan Geekie scoring a goal or creating a Grade A chance for a teammate. The B’s have scored 44 goals since Feb. 1, and Pastrnak and Geekie have combined to score 19 of them. No other Bruins player has more than three goals during that 17-game stretch. This team has zero offensive threats outside of those two guys, so it wasn’t surprising that Geekie scored the lone goal versus the Knights and Pastrnak picked up an assist on it.

The Bruins had a jolt of energy following the trade deadline with back-to-back wins against quality opponents in the Lightning and Panthers. But all of that momentum was quickly erased by four consecutive losses. And it’s not just that the Bruins are losing, they’re getting blown out in a lot of games. Thursday’s game was the 14th time Boston has lost by four or more goals this season. That’s a really high number.

There are a lot of issues with this Bruins roster. General manager Don Sweeney has a lot of work to do in the offseason to fix the mess he’s created.

The No. 1 priority needs to be bolstering the offensive talent up front.

Scoring goals in all situations, including the power play, has been a season-long struggle for this team. This problem is even greater when you consider the Bruins play in a division that features three of the league’s top 10 teams (Maple Leafs, Lightning and Panthers) in goals scored and power play percentage.

Even though reaching the playoffs is an unrealistic goal at the moment — MoneyPuck’s model gives Boston a 0.5 percent chance of securing a wild card berth — there are still a few things the Bruins can accomplish over their last 12 games.

One of them is give some prospects a chance to prove themselves against NHL competition.

Top prospect Fabian Lysell was recalled earlier this week and is expected to play on the current road trip. He has played in only one career game for the Bruins since being selected in the first round of the 2021 NHL Draft. He has played well for Providence this season and has improved his two-way skill set. The B’s need to see if he can be part of the team’s long-term plans. The best way to do that is give him as many reps as possible against NHL opponents.

The Bruins also need to evaluate the players they acquired in deals prior to the trade deadline. Where does Casey Mittelstadt best fit in the lineup? Is he a center or a wing? Which position on the power play best suits him?

Marat Khusnutdinov has scored two goals in six games with the Bruins, who have played him in a more offensive-minded role than he had with the Wild. He brings plenty of speed to the lineup, which the B’s desperately need. Could he become a fixture in the bottom-six moving forward?

Henri Jokiharju is a good skater and moves the puck well. Could the young defenseman be a third pairing option next season?

These are all questions the Bruins must address in the final few weeks of the regular season. They have to evaluate what they already have on the roster and try to improve their draft lottery odds as much as possible. The future has to be the sole focus of the organization.

The Columbus Blue Jackets and Pittsburgh Penguins play the third and final game of the season series. The Blue Jackets have won both games played this year. 

The struggling Blue Jackets have a huge game tonight against the Penguins. A win will bring them two points closer to the wild card 2 spot, but a loss drop them to within two points of 7th place Pittsburgh. In fact, should they win, they would jump from sixth to fourth in the Metro. 

However, there's just one thing to remember: The Columbus Blue Jackets have won just one game against the Pittsburgh Penguins in Pittsburgh in the last ten years, and that win came in January. That game was the game that Sean Monahan was injured. 

Friday's game is crucial! 

Penguins Stats

• Power Play – 24.0% - 10th in NHL
• Penalty Kill – 77.3% - 19th in NHL
• Goals For - 204 – 16th – 2.90 GPG – 19th
• Goals Against – 249 – 31st – 3.56 GPG – 31st

Series History vs. The Penguins

• Columbus is 5-18-5 on the road and 18-29-9 in 56 all-time meetings vs. Pittsburgh.
• The Jackets are 4-3-1 in the last eight against the Pens, but have won three straight games.
• The CBJ has won one game at PPG Paints Arena since November 13, 2015. That win came on Jan 7, 2025. 

Who To Watch For The Penguins

• Sidney Crosby leads the team with 50 assists and 74 points.  
• Rickard Rakell leads the Pens with 31 goals. 
• Alex Nedeljkovic is 12-14-5 with a .891 SV%. 

CBJ Player Notes vs. Penguins

• Damon Severson has 20 points in 44 career games vs. Pittsburgh.
• Zach Werenski has 13 points in 20 games.  
• James van Riemsdyk has 31 points in 55 games vs. the Pens.

Injuries

• Erik Gudbranson (upper body) is on Injured Reserve on Oct. 16 (65 Games)

• Sean Monahan (upper body) is on Injured Reserve retroactive to Jan. 7 (27 Games)
• Kevin Labanc (shoulder) is on Injured Reserve as of Feb. 21 and is out for the season (12 Games)
• Cole Sillinger is day-to-day with an upper-body injury (9 Games)
• Jake Christiansen (upper body); (3 Games)

TOTAL MAN GAMES LOST: 293

How to Watch & Listen: Tonight's game will be on FanDuel Sports Network. Steve Mears will be on the play-by-play. The radio broadcast will be on 97.1 The Fan, with Bob McElligott behind the mic doing the play-by-play.

Let us know what you think below.

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