Joe Pavelski scored a power-play goal at 3:18 of overtime to give the Dallas Stars a 3-2 win against the visiting Vegas Golden Knights in Game 4 of the Western Conference finals on Thursday night and keep the Stars alive in the best-of-seven series.
The Golden Knights hold a 3-1 series lead heading to Game 5 in Las Vegas on Saturday.
Dallas defenseman Brayden McNabb was in the penalty box with his second high-sticking penalty of the game when Pavelski scored with the one-timer from the left circle.
Jason Robertson scored two goals and Jake Oettinger made 37 saves for the Stars, who were 0-4 in overtime in the 2023 playoffs.
William Karlsson and Jonathan Marchessault scored and Adin Hill made 39 saves for Vegas, which had won five in a row.
Karlsson tipped in Reilly Smith’s shot off the rush to give the Golden Knights a 1-0 lead at 4:17 of the first period.
Robertson scored on a power play to tie it 1-1 at 15:42 of the period. Robertson’s redirection went off Hill and caromed in the air. Hill tried to glove the puck, but Robertson knocked it away with his blade and then batted the puck into the net from waist level.
Hill had stopped 58 consecutive shots dating back to the second period of Game 2.
Golden Knights forward Jack Eichel was stopped on a breakaway with just over 10 minutes left in the second period, but Vegas scored 34 seconds later to take a 2-1 lead. McNabb was just above the goal line when he centered the puck through the crease to Marchessault, who redirected it into the net at 10:23.
Robertson, who took a career-high 11 shots on goal, scored again at 17:21 of the second period to tie it 2-2.
Esa Lindell’s point shot was wide of the net, but the rebound banked off the end boards to Robertson, and he backhanded the puck into the open side of net.
Dallas played without team captain Jamie Benn, who was suspended two games for cross-checking Mark Stone in the face after the Vegas forward fell on his back early in Game 3.
The Stars also were without forward Evgenii Dadonov, who sustained a lower-body injury early in the first period of Game 3.
Benn and Dadonov had combined for 21 points (seven goals, 14 assists) in the 15 games before Game 3.
–Field Level Media