Rapid Recap: Golden Knights 5, Avalanche 1 (Game 4)

Jonathan Marchessault scored a hat trick and William Karlsson assisted on all three of those goals as the Vegas Golden Knights defeated the Colorado Avalanche 5-1 on Sunday at T-Mobile Arena in Game 4 of the second round in the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs. The best-of-seven set is tied at 2-2.
Brandon Saad scored the first goal of the game at 1:50 of the first period for Colordo, his sixth marker of the postseason. Philipp Grubauer made 30 saves, including 14 in the opening frame.
Max Pacioretty and Patrick Brown also tallied for the Golden Knights, who went 1-for-4 on the power play.

Game 5 is set for Tuesday at 7 p.m. MT at Ball Arena.

THE GOALS

1st Period
1:50 COL (1-0) - Brandon Saad put home the rebound of a J.T. Compher shot from the right point.
7:07 VGK (1-1) - Jonathan Marchessault scored into an open net after a turnover in the Avalanche defensive zone.
2nd Period
1:11 VGK (1-2) - Max Pacioretty tallied from the left circle on an odd-man rush.
11:28 VGK (1-3) - PPG, Jonathan Marchessault recorded his second of the game with a one-timer from the left circle on the power play.
3rd Period
6:01 VGK (1-4) - Jonathan Marchessault converted on a cross-crease pass from Reilly Smith and completed a hat trick.
13:13 VGK (1-5) - Patrick Brown's shot the puck into Philipp Grubauer, who slid across the goal line with it under him.
Final: Golden Knights - 5 | Avalanche - 1

3 STARS

Selected by AT&T Sports Net

POWER PLAYS

Colorado: 0 for 2
Vegas: 1 for 4

GOALTENDING BATTLE

Colorado: Philipp Grubauer made 30 saves
Vegas: Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 17 shots

STAT OF THE NIGHT

Mikko Rantanen saw his postseason 17-game point streak come to an end. He had found the scoresheet in each Avalanche playoff game dating back to Game 3 of Round 1 last year against the Arizona Coyotes. He had 27 points (10 goals, 17 assists) in the run, and he became the first NHL player with points in 17 straight playoff contests since Al MacInnis (19 games) with Calgary from 1989 to 1990.

NOTEBOOK

Brandon Saad scored for the sixth time this postseason, with all six goals coming in the past seven outings… Saad's tally came 1:50 after puck drop and opened the game's scoring. It marked the sixth time this postseason that Colorado scored the first goal of the game... The Avalanche challenged Patrick Brown's goal at 13:13 of the third period for goaltender interference, but it was determined that the call on the stood... The Avalanche now owns an all-time record of 26-20 in Game 4 of best-of-seven series.

BIG HIGHLIGHT

IMAGE OF THE GAME

ROSTER REPORT

The Avalanche mixed up its middle-six trios, putting Valeri Nichushkin on the left side of a line with Tyson Jost and Joonas Donskoi and moving Andre Burakovsky back to the right wing on a combination with Brandon Saad and J.T. Compher.

INJURY UPDATE

• Matt Calvert (upper body): Out long term and is doubtful to return this year after having surgery; last played on March 23 at Arizona.
• Pavel Francouz (lower body): Expected to return fully healthy next season after having surgery earlier this year; hurt during practice on Jan. 18.
• Erik Johnson (upper body): Has been skating on his own or in small groups and could possibly return later in the playoffs depending on how he progresses; last played on Jan. 30 at Minnesota.
• Jayson Megna (COVID protocol): Was removed from the NHL's COVID-protocol list on Saturday.
• Logan O'Connor (lower body): Has been skating with the group, but there is still no timetable on his return as he recovers from surgery; last played on March 31 vs. Arizona.

UP NEXT

The Avs and Knights return to Denver to face off in Game 5 at Ball Arena on Tuesday. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m. MT. Game 6 will take place in Las Vegas on Thursday.

LINE COMBINATIONS

Based on start of the game
Forwards
92 Gabriel Landeskog - 29 Nathan MacKinnon - 96 Mikko Rantanen
13 Valeri Nichushkin - 17 Tyson Jost - 72 Joonas Donskoi
20 Brandon Saad - 37 J.T. Compher - 95 Andre Burakovsky
34 Carl Soderberg - 41 Pierre-Edouard Bellemare - 44 Kiefer Sherwood
Defensemen
7 Devon Toews - 8 Cale Makar
27 Ryan Graves - 49 Samuel Girard
24 Patrik Nemeth - 22 Conor Timmins
Goaltenders
31 Philipp Grubauer
40 Devan Dubnyk