In Edmonton, the Vegas Golden Knights handed the crease to Marc-Andre Fleury who made 26 saves and defeated the Chicago Blackhawks, 2-1, in Game 3 on Saturday evening.
“I’m not going to lie, I was little nervous and had some butterflies,” Fleury said. “I find ways over the years to handle things better than when I was younger. It’s still a lot of fun and it’s playoff hockey.
“The game meant a lot, and to go up 3-0 was big. I just tried to stop one puck at a time, one shot at a time, and it worked out.”
The win moves the Knights to a 3-0 lead in the series.
William Karlsson and Patrick Brown struck for Vegas in the first and second periods, respectively for a 2-0 lead through 40 minutes of play.
“[Mark Stone] slowed down and gave me space to go, and I knew I had time for a backhand shot,” Karlsson said. “I’m happy I put it in. It was a great play (by Stone).”
Olli Maatta scored the Hawks’ lone goal midway through the third period.
“We’re down three games. Tomorrow’s a must-win to stay alive,” the Blackhawks’ Jonathan Toews said. “That’s the reality, that’s the way we look at it. We were working for the bounces, pucks were lying around, we just didn’t find the back of the net. Tomorrow, we have to believe that we will.”
Game 4 is a quick turn around for the series with Edmonton hosting the game on early Sunday evening.
“[Fleury] was our best player, and my plan all along was to play both guys in the back-to-back and that’s what we did, so it was an easy decision,” Vegas head coach Peter DeBoer said. “[Fleury] came in and did exactly what we needed him to do and what everyone has come to expect of him, which was give us a fantastic game.”
[WATCH: All Golden Knights vs. Blackhawks Game 3 highlights]
Corey Crawford made 24 saves in the loss.
“We can’t be a victim,” Blackhawks head coach Jeremy Colliton said. “We’re playing hard, proud of the work ethic. We need to find another level. The time we can feel sorry for ourselves is later on, but now is not the time. We have to be better than them for 60 (minutes) tomorrow and continue to put pucks to the net, find a way to get a couple more greasy rebound goals.
“They’ve been getting chances in bunches; they get four in one shift or four on a power play, whatever it may be. We have to find a way to limit those.”
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