Golden Knights rally for OT win, hand Jets 10th loss in row

WINNIPEG -- Tomas Hertl scored a power-play goal with 13 seconds remaining in overtime for the Vegas Golden Knights, who handed the Winnipeg Jets their 10th straight loss with a 4-3 win at Canada Life Centre on Tuesday.

After Jets defenseman Dylan Samberg was assessed a minor penalty for tripping at 4:09, Hertl tipped Mitch Marner’s shot off the post and in at 4:47.

“Mitch makes a great play,” Hertl said. “And special teams come (through) for us again. The power play is there for us all season long."

Mark Stone extended his goal streak to five games, and Carter Hart made 17 saves for the Golden Knights (18-11-12), who ended a five-game losing skid (0-3-2).

“We defended really well in the third,” Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said. “Overtime was probably all (Winnipeg’s) best chances. It was kind of one sequence when our [defenseman] was exhausted. All in all, that was a good buy-in in that area. I thought we kept pushing.”

Kyle Connor, Cole Perfetti, and Luke Schenn scored, Gabriel Vilardi had two assists, and Connor Hellebuyck made 27 saves for the Jets (15-21-5), who are 0-6-4 in their past 10.

“I think we did a lot of things to try and eliminate their top players from being into it,” Winnipeg coach Scott Arniel said. “There was a lot of things we did correct. The hard part was when we had to go down to five [defensemen], those guys were getting winded. Vegas did a real good job of getting pucks into our corners and making our 'D' have to go back and get them. At the end of the day, (we’ve) got to continue.”

Perfetti gave Winnipeg a 1-0 lead at 5:16 of the first period. As Perfetti darted across the edge of the crease, Jonathan Toews found him with a drop pass from the slot, and Perfetti scored on the backhand.

“I thought we didn't give them much,” Perfetti said. “That was a tight checking game both ways. There wasn't really much ice out there. So, I thought we did a good job kind of eliminating their offense, their rush game. And in turn, we were able to get some [offensive]-zone time, some chances.”

Schenn's point shot hit the crossbar and got past Hart to put the Jets up 2-0 at 12:04 of the second period. It was Schenn's first goal since Oct. 19, 2024, with the Nashville Predators.

“I thought in the second period we had some looks and did some good things,” Schenn said. “Nice to see it go in. Obviously, they don’t happen too often. I was pretty pumped at the time. The last one I got was last year right around the 1,000th game mark. It doesn’t come too often. It would have been a lot sweeter to get it in a win.”

Stone cut it to 2-1 on the power play at 19:09. He found a redirected puck from the rebound of Pavel Dorofeyev's shot at the left side of the net and put it past Hellebuyck.

“2-0 and 2-1 is a big difference, they don't have room for error now,” Cassidy said. “It was a big goal for us. It was our top guys, they probably need it. Offensively, we haven’t been, you know, lighting the scoreboard up. So, you know, those guys need to feel good about their game.”

Brett Howden tied it 2-2 at 8:13 of the third period. After collecting the rebound from his own shot, Noah Hanifin set Howden up for a one-timer with a cross-slot pass.

“It's been a tough stretch for the team,” Hanifin said. “We were fighting it a little bit there tonight. And finally getting that win, the mood on the team is a bit more uplifted now and we've got to carry that into the next game here.”

Connor put the Jets back in front 3-2 at 14:56, scoring with a wrist shot in the high slot that beat Hart blocker side.

“When we get the lead like we did after 'KC’s' goal, we’ve got to find a way. That has to go into lockdown mode,” Arniel said. “That’s a mistake by us. Obviously, the skill set by the opposition was good and strong, but at the end of the day, we have to shut that one down.”

Just 59 seconds later, Reilly Smith scored with his backhand on the rebound of Ben Hutton's shot at the left post to tie it 3-3 at 15:55.

“We always think that we can claw our way back in games, and we’ve done it quite a bit of times this year,” Smith said. “I think the tricky part for this team is not falling behind so many times in the game. We make it difficult for ourselves. But it’s nice to be able to come out of this one with two points.”

Winnipeg defenseman Haydn Fleury was removed from the ice on a stretcher at 13:16 of the first period and did not return. Following a check from Golden Knights forward Keegan Kolesar, who was not issued a penalty on the play, Fleury slid backward and crashed into the end boards behind the Jets' net.

The Jets announced Fleury was fully alert and moving his extremities upon his departure to the hospital.

“He obviously slammed his back, his neck, hit his head, and then (broke) his nose,” Arniel said. “He’s at the hospital. He’ll be staying overnight. Obviously, he’s got a lot of tests to go through.

“It’s unfortunate. … He totally lost his balance and then went in hard. … You hate to see that stuff. Scary situation.”

NOTES: Schenn played his 1,100th NHL game. … Stone became the fourth Golden Knights player to have a five-game goal streak, joining Max Pacioretty (seven games in 2021-22), William Karlsson (five in 2017-18), and Erik Haula (five in 2017-18).