Golden Knights Get Back In The Win Column

LAS VEGAS, NV - When the Vegas Golden Knights lost the first of a seven-game homestand on Sunday it was s shock to the city, team, and its fans. After all, it was only the fourth loss in 26 games at T-Mobile Arena this season. The befuddlement didn't last long. The Knights got back to their winning ways, riding a furious third period rally to beat Chicago 5-2 Tuesday.

The Blackhawks outplayed the Knights for 40 minutes and took a 2-1 lead into the third period. The Knights closed the game out in dominating fashion by outscoring the Blackhawks 4-0 in the final period.

"There's no panic in this room, but at the same time there was a little bit more urgency because we had to get our legs moving and just play harder," defenseman Nate Schmidt said.

Marc-Andre Fleury kept the game close waiting for the offense to arrive. He said the late game heroics are something the locker room is getting used to are used to.

"We've seen our team do that many times this year. I think its just about trying to stop the next one, keep the game close," said Fleury, who stopped 29 of 31 shots Tuesday night.

Brad Hunt tied the game in the third period with his second goal of the season. Less than two minutes later Reilly Smith netted his seventh goal of the season to put the Knights ahead 3-2. Less than two minutes after that David Perron notched his 14th goal of the season. The stunning three-goal burst in the period's first five minutes was enough to put the game out of reach. Tomas Nosek iced the game late with his fourth goal of the year.

Golden Knights' head coach Gerard Gallant was pleased to see his team rebound after Sunday's loss to Philadelphia.

"The other night we didn't have quite the same intensity and the same jump. I don't make excuses for our team, after that six-game 12-day road trip it wasn't the same team I seen (sic) out there the other night," Gallant said. "But tonight we got our energy level back tonight. We played hard, we played fast."

The Golden Knights earned their 78th point of the season and improved to 37-15-4 on the season.

The Golden Knights were consistent putting shots on goal: 12 in the first period, 13 in the second, and 12 in the third. They struggled however on the power play, converting only once on six chances.

The Edmonton Oilers come to Las Vegas Thursday night for a 7 p.m. puck drop.

Image via David Becker/Associated Press