Marchessault, Eichel power Golden Knights past Capitals

LAS VEGAS -- Jonathan Marchessault scored twice for the Vegas Golden Knights in a 4-1 victory against the Washington Capitals at T-Mobile Arena on Saturday.

Jack Eichel had a goal and two assists, and Mark Stone scored for Vegas (16-5-4). Logan Thompson made 21 saves.

"We're capitalizing on our chances," Stone said. "The structure has been there all year that's allowed us to stay in games. We didn't stray from it. That's what allowed us to get some overtime points and greasy wins."

Tom Wilson scored, and Darcy Kuemper made 32 saves for Washington (12-7-2), which had won two in a row.

Marchessault opened the scoring at 8:53 of the first period on the power play with a wrist shot from the high slot to put Vegas up 1-0. It was his first goal in seven games.

"It was kind of nice to get on the board," Marchessault said. "Obviously for a guy like me, it's always just a matter of time. I don't know anything else but hard work ... and sometimes it pays off at some point."

Eichel made it 2-0 at 7:56 of the second period, outracing defenseman John Carlson to a loose puck, scoring through Kuemper's five-hole.

"He's a driver," Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy said. "The drivers of teams when they're on, pull everyone along. That's what they do. They're just those special guys. He's a guy that, let's face it, if he's off a little bit or not in our lineup we miss that part. He means a lot."

Stone extended the lead to 3-0 49 seconds into the third period, beating Kuemper glove side at the side of the net.

"It was a great play [by Eichel]. He drives a couple of guys to him and gets goalie chasing," Stone said. "I just banked it in. It's just great play by a great player. You have to be ready when he's got the puck because you never know where he's going to put it."

Wilson scored to make it 3-1 with 3:14 remaining in the game on a one-timer from the slot with Kuemper pulled for an extra skater.

The Capitals were outshot 28-9 in the first two periods.

"We just couldn't generate enough puck possession in the offensive zone," Washington coach Spencer Carbery said. "Our start was alright. We probably didn't do enough with those pucks early on that we could have turned into sustained pressure and delivery and shots on goals. In the second period, they took over and we weren't able to generate enough as we need to puck possession wise."

Marchessault scored an empty-net goal with 1:57 remaining for the 4-1 final.

NOTES: Washington forward Alex Ovechkin did not have a point and remains one shy of 1,500 for his NHL career. … Marchessault and William Karlsson combined on the same goal for the 136th time, tied with Marchessault and Reilly Smith for the most in Vegas history.