Golden Knights ‘just didn’t quit’ in gutsy OT win in Game 4 of Western 1st Round

SALT LAKE CITY -- Shea Theodore walked down the hall, put his stick in the rack and shouted, “Let’s go home!” The defenseman turned right into the Vegas Golden Knights locker room, where his teammates were waiting to celebrate.

Perhaps the biggest emotion was relief for the Golden Knights after Theodore scored at 19:08 of overtime, giving them a wild, gutsy 5-4 win against the Utah Mammoth at Delta Center on Monday in Game 4 of the Western Conference First Round.

Vegas took a 3-0 lead. Utah pulled ahead 4-3. The Golden Knights tied it 4-4 in the third period to force overtime, then thought they had won it when forward Pavel Dorofeyev appeared to score at 10:22 of OT. But the goal was disallowed, because the back of center Jack Eichel’s skate blade was barely offside, and they had to bounce back again.

“We just didn’t quit,” Theodore said.

And so, the best-of-7 series is tied 2-2 entering Game 5 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Wednesday (10 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, Utah16, SCRIPPS, truTV, TNT, TVAS).

“We hung in there,” Vegas coach John Tortorella said. “The guys know where we’re at, very important game to keep the series in a good frame for us. Found a way to win. … That’s something we can lean on as we keep moving into these games.”

After Dorofeyev put the puck in the net in OT, fans started leaving the arena. Tortorella said he was in the coaches’ room “pretty much celebrating,” when someone yelled that they weren’t sure the goal was good.

“So, that was a little weird for me,” Tortorella said.

Tortorella scrambled back to the bench as the officials reviewed the video. The Vegas players were unsure. Forward Cole Smith said he was sitting on the bench right on the blue line when the play went past.

“It looked a little bit scary but also looked good at the same time,” Smith said.

The Golden Knights hoped for the best and prepared for the worst.

“We have such a mature group,” Vegas forward Brett Howden said. “I mean, we were watching it on the Jumbotron. We were thinking it may get called back, but we didn’t waver. We stuck with it, didn’t let it affect us.”

When the fans learned the goal had been disallowed, they roared and waved their white rally towels. Some fans outside must have regretted leaving when they did. It looked like the Mammoth might have the momentum.

But the Golden Knights kept their composure.

“The building got pretty rocking there,” Vegas forward Mitch Marner said. “There was a sigh of relief for their fan base and them, and for us, I think we just realized that we did a lot of good things throughout that period that gave us that look.”

Finally, Eichel backhanded a pass from end boards into the slot, while Utah goalie Karel Vejmelka was down with no stick. Theodore stepped up and fired the puck into a gaping net. Vejmelka lay on his back on the ice as the Golden Knights mobbed Theodore.

“It’s just a good feeling,” Theodore said. “Obviously, it (stinks) having that one called back, but I feel like we kept our foot on the gas, and I think scoring an OT winner is pretty special.”

It took guts just to get to OT under the circumstances.

The Golden Knights took a 1-0 lead when Dorofeyev scored at 1:12 of the first period. They had spent only 17:27 playing with a lead entering the game, third lowest in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The teams that had spent less time with a lead had already been swept in their series: the Los Angeles Kings (3:21) and Ottawa Senators (0:00).

Howden made it 2-0 with a short-handed goal at 18:38 of the first, and Smith made it 3-0 at 3:26 of the second.

Great start.

But then it was gone, just like that.

The Mammoth scored two goals 29 seconds apart in the second period -- forward Nick Schmaltz at 8:04, defenseman Ian Cole at 8:33. Forward Michael Carcone tied it 3-3 at 1:45 of the third, and center Clayton Keller gave Utah a 4-3 lead at 5:10.

Delta Center was delirious.

And then Howden tied it 4-4 on a deflection at 10:25 of the third period.

“It’s ups and downs,” Marner said. “It’s a roller-coaster ride throughout games. There’s lead changes. Just, the rhythm of games can change quickly. But I like how we just stayed with our game plan, stayed resilient, kept throwing pucks to the net, getting guys there. Obviously, a massive tip by ‘Howie’ to score that tying goal, and then from there, I thought we had some really good pressure in overtime.”

The Golden Knights headed straight to the airport afterward. The key now is to get off the roller-coaster, at least until it ramps up again Wednesday.

“We can’t get too high,” Tortorella said. “I want them to enjoy it for a few minutes here, but then we get back to work tomorrow and get ready for Game 5.”