Pavelski lifts Stars over Golden Knights in OT to avoid sweep

Joe Pavelski scored on a power play 3:18 into overtime and the Dallas Stars avoided a sweep in the Western Conference finals with a 3-2 win over the Las Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday night.

Jason Robertson scored twice in his first career multi-goal playoff game with Dallas, which played without suspended captain Jamie Benn. Jake Oettinger had 37 saves, two nights after he was sacked 7:10 into Game 3 after allowing three goals on five shots.

William Karlsson and Jonathan Marchessault scored for Las Vegas. Adin Hill had his five game winning streak snapped. He made 39 shots, including a life save with his left leg extended with two minutes left in regulation off a swipe attempt by rookie Fredrik Olofsson in his first career playoff game.

Karlsson and Marchessault are among the six original Las Vegas players still on the team from the inaugural 2017-18 season that ended with the Knights playing for the Stanley Cup, though they lost in five games to the Washington Capitals after winning the first game.

Vegas missed a chance to complete a sweep, one night after the Florida Panthers finished off a sweep of the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference final.

Vegas took a 2-1 lead midway through the second period when Marchessault, after slamming his stick into the back of Ryan Suter in front of the net, scored on a pass between Stars defenseman Brayden McNabb’s legs, another Original Golden Knight.

Robertson’s equalizing goal late in that period came off a backboard rebound just seconds after another shot hit the post. That was the fourth goal of this series, and the sixth in the playoffs, after he became the first Dallas player with a 100-point season this regular season.

With former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson and wrestling great Ric Flair both in the building wearing Stars jerseys, Dallas avoided being swept in the playoffs for the first time since 2001 against St. Louis in the second round. This was the Stars’ 21st playoff series since.

Karlsson pushed the puck up and skidded to the front of the net after passing Nicolas Roy, whose pass through traffic went off a Dallas stick before Reilly Smith, also with Las Vegas all along, nailed it. just inside the correct circle and fired. . Karlsson’s deflection past Oettinger just 4:17 into the game was his eighth goal this postseason.

Dallas rallied 1-1 on a power play with 4:18 left in the first period after some clever play of sticks by Robertson, who deflected Miro Heiskanen’s shot just inside the blue line in the air. As Hill tried to secure the puck in his glove, Robertson released it, then reached up and slid the puck into the net with his club parallel to the ice.

Hill, coming off the first playoff shutout of his career, stopped 60 straight shots in a span that included overtime in Game 2 after stopping all 10 shots he faced in the third quarter.