Though the Golden Knights were able to salvage a point in Saturday’s 5-4 shootout loss to the Washington Capitals, defenseman Rasmus Andersson summed it in four words.
“We need two points,” said Andersson, who contributed to a four-goal outburst that erased Washington’s three-goal lead.
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The Capitals took a 3-0 lead early in the second period, but Vegas clawed its way back with four unanswered goals to take a 4-3 lead just 31 seconds into the third period.
Former Capital Nic Dowd, Andersson, Jack Eichel and Mitch Marner scored for the Knights, who lost for the 12th time in 16 games since Feb. 27.
“”It feels like we’re limping along, but parts of our game are really good,” Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said. “We just got to tie it all together.”
The Golden Knights are still in third place in the Pacific Division with 80 points, three behind the streaking second-place Edmonton Oilers and four in front of the Los Angeles Kings.
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After a brutal collision with Washington’s Aliaksei Protas that sent both players to the locker room with a little more than one minute left in the first period, Dowd returned with stitches above his left eye and ignited Vegas with his first goal as a member of the Golden Knights.
Vegas acquired Dowd from Washington in exchange for goaltender Jesper Vikman, a third-round pick in the 2027 NHL Entry Draft, and a second-round pick in the 2029 NHL Entry Draft on March 5.
“Just felt good to get on the board and hear the building erupt,” Dowd said. “You know, feel like you’re contributing. As a hockey player, you want to feel like you can contribute to the team, and in that moment, that’s how it felt.”
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1 … After outshooting the Capitals 28-17 in regulation, including 12-6 in the first and 10-5 in the second, the Golden Knights managed just one shot on goal in overtime, while the Capitals had four. The Golden Knights are now 8-16 overall in games that have gone past regulation.
Andersson finished with a goal and an assist, giving him 40 points for the season. Andersson followed Dowd’s goal to close the gap to one goal when he took a pass from Eichel at the red line, raced through two defenders and around a third before victimizing former Knight Logan Thompson with a backhand-forehand deke.
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“There’s reason he’s a player that he is, and you know, he made a great play,” Dowd said about Andersson. “(He) got us into that 3-2 spot, and then the building erupted again. And you could just feel there was energy that we were lacking early.”
The Golden Knights will play their third of a four-game homestand on Monday, when they’ll host the Vancouver Canucks.
PHOTO CAPTION: Washington Capitals center Dylan Strome (17) scores against Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Adin Hill (33) during a shoot-out at T-Mobile Arena.
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