National Hockey League
Vegas 4, Columbus 2
When: 10:30 PM ET, Saturday, March 23, 2024
Where: T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada
Referees: Francis Charron, Trevor Hanson
Linesmen: Ryan Gibbons, Andrew Smith
Attendance: 18225

Jack Eichel scored two goals for the Vegas Golden Knights in a 4-2 win against the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday night in Las Vegas.

Ivan Barbashev and Pavel Dorofeyev also scored and Adin Hill stopped 12 of 13 shots before an apparent injury caused him to depart early in the third period.

Logan Thompson entered and stopped eight of nine shots for the Golden Knights (38-25-7, 83 points), who have won five of seven to maintain a four-point lead over the St. Louis Blues for the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference.

The defending Stanley Cup Champions open a four-game road trip in St. Louis on Monday.

Erik Gudbranson and Carson Meyer scored and Daniil Tarasov made 43 saves for the Blue Jackets (23-36-12, 58 points), who have lost seven of eight.

Barbashev tied it 1-1 at 3:31 of the second when he took a wrist shot from the top of the right circle. Tarasov made the save, but the rebound came into the high slot, and Barbashev shot it into the net.

A few seconds after Columbus forward Kirill Marchenko hit the post, Eichel scored on another rebound to give Vegas a 2-1 lead at 4:57. It was the 500th point of Eichel's NHL career.

Dorofeyev made it 3-1 at 3:03 of the third period when he faked a shot and then skated around Tarasov before sweeping the puck into the open net.

Eichel scored again on a power play with 2:42 left in the game for a 4-1 lead.

Meyer scored from in close with 12 seconds left to make it 4-2.

The Golden Knights outshot Columbus 15-1 the first 10 minutes of the second period and 22-3 throughout the period.

Columbus scored on its first shot on goal when Gudbranson took a wrist shot from just in front of the blue line that glanced off Vegas defenseman Brayden McNabb and into the net for a 1-0 lead at 4:32 of the first period.

The goal gave Gudbranson his first 20-point season in his 13-year NHL career, and defenseman Zach Werenski assisted on the goal to give him sole possession of second place on the team's all-time assist list (205).

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Columbus   Vegas
Erik Gudbranson 1 Points Jack Eichel 2
Erik Gudbranson 1 Goals Jack Eichel 2
Trey Fix-Wolansky 1 Assists Chandler Stephenson 2
N/A Power Play Goals Jack Eichel 1
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Daniil Tarasov .915 Save Percentage Adin Hill .923
Daniil Tarasov 43 Saves Adin Hill 12
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Columbus 22 2 0-1 1-2 4 26
Vegas 47 4 1-2 1-1 2 24
Upcoming Games
  • Vegas will play their next game on the road against St. Louis. The Golden Knights have a W/L % of .526 after a win and .562 after a loss.
  • Columbus will play their next game on the road against Arizona. The Blue Jackets have a W/L % of .125 after a win and .426 after a loss.