Tomas Hertl returns to San Jose, Golden Knights beat Sharks – Hockey Writer – Vegas Golden Knights

The Vegas Golden Knights scored four goals in the third quarter, including two shorthanded goals in the same shootout, to defeat the San Jose Sharks 6-3 for their first win in the past 10 games. 9 wins.

This game marked Tomas Hertl's first appearance at the SAP Center with the Golden Knights. Hertl spent most of his first 11 NHL seasons with the Sharks, for whom he played more than 700 games and scored nearly 500 points as well as 42 playoff points.

game review

The action in this game started before the first puck dropped, with the Sharks paying tribute to Hertl via video and getting a standing ovation from the San Jose crowd.

After a back-and-forth start, Vegas struck first, using their speed to create a strange rush and create an open spot for Noah Hanifin, who fired a perfect shot into the top corner for the Golden Knights. The team takes the lead. They used this goal as motivation and dominated the game for several minutes, but were unable to extend their advantage. In the end, the Sharks took advantage and Shakeel Mukahamudulin equalized with his first career goal. He had a fluke shot that likely would have gone wide had it not been for a deflection by Vegas goalie Adin Hill, but it still counted on the scoreboard.

Two goals came in less than three minutes of the second period, with Mark Stone taking the lead in a net scramble and Will Smith equalizing in even more chaotic fashion shortly after the end. Smith's goal seemed to give the Sharks a boost as they spent much of the next 10 minutes moving high and threatening in the Vegas zone. Their efforts culminated when Tyler Toffoli scored to give San Jose its first lead of the game, this time on a double shot from Hill and Nicholas Hague.

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But in the third quarter, the game suddenly turned in the Golden Knights' favor, oddly enough, thanks to a penalty kick against the Golden Knights. A trip on Alexander Holtz sparked a brief four-on-four, and Vegas won the ensuing faceoff, leading to Brayden McNabb's goal — a nominal one — at the start of the Sharks' power play. A shorthanded goal, but a short one nonetheless. The real breakthrough came 23 seconds later, when poor play by the Sharks on the glass led to another Golden Knights breakout on a smart goal by Jack Eichel. Pavel Dorofiyev added a few minutes later to put Vegas in complete control of the game, and Brett Howden scored a late empty-net goal to make the difference. Good results.

The two teams continue to trend in opposite directions in the standings – the Golden Knights continue to have the NHL's highest scoring percentage, while the Sharks rank second in that category.

Other things to note

• Smith's goal was the first by either Smith or McLean Celebrini, the other of whom was the primary assister.
• The time between shorthanded goals was 23 seconds, the shortest amount of time in Sharks history to allow two shorthanded goals.
• The Golden Knights outscored their opponents 53-25 in the third quarter this season.
• Hill hasn't lost to the Sharks since the Sharks traded him to Vegas in the 2022 offseason.

The Sharks return to action on Saturday night (Dec. 28) against the Calgary Flames, while the Golden Knights' next game is also Sunday (Dec. 29) at home against Calgary.