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Golden Knights coach John Tortorella tips cap to unlikely hero after Game 1 WCF win
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- Golden Knights coach John Tortorella tips cap to unlikely hero after Game 1 WCF win
Golden Knights coach John Tortorella tips cap to unlikely hero after Game 1 WCF win appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The Vegas Golden Knights came into Ball Arena without their captain and earned a massive win in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final, beating the President's Trophy-winning Colorado Avalanche 4-2 to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.
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The Knights scored the first three tallies of the contest and never looked back, and the opener was from maybe the most unlikely player on the roster. Defenseman Dylan Coghlan , who has scored six career NHL goals — and zero in the postseason — beat Scott Wedgewood through the five-hole with just over seven minutes remaining in the second period.
It was his first NHL goal since December of 2021.
The 28-year-old, who played in just his fifth Stanley Cup Playoff game on Wednesday in place of the injured Jeremy Lauzon , earned high praise from his head coach afterwards.
"When you say Dylan Coghlan to me, I think of no fear," John Tortorella told reporters, per The Associated Press. "I think he's one of our best defensemen since he's been with us and in the lineup. … He's a bit unflappable."
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Coghlan has been a stabilizing factor on the Golden Knights ' blue line, and he was promoted to the top pairing alongside Shea Theodore at times during the team's six-game, second-round victory over the Anaheim Ducks .
Although he was skating on the third pair with Ben Hutton against the Avalanche, he made an impact at both ends of the rink despite seeing just eight minutes of ice time.
That figures to increase as the West Final goes along, considering how solid he was against a powerhouse Colorado club.
"This is probably the best I've felt in my whole career," Coghlan said, per AP. "Whoever it is I'm playing with I'm very comfortable out there with them. They make it pretty easy on me. We have some pretty world-class players."
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Pavel Dorofeyev , Brett Howden and Nic Dowd also scored for Vegas, while Carter Hart was terrific between the pipes , making 36 saves.
With that, the Knights have stolen home-ice advantage from their cross-divisional rivals, and will have a chance to take a commanding 2-0 lead in the series before heading back to the strip.
Game 2 is set for Friday night in Denver, with puck drop scheduled for 8:00 p.m. ET.
Related: 2 Avalanche most to blame for Game 1 loss to Golden Knights
Related: What Golden Knights did to steal Game 1 vs. Avalanche, per Carter Hart
