LAS VEGAS -- Raphael Lavoie scored his first NHL goal to break a third-period tie, and the Vegas Golden Knights defeated the Ottawa Senators 4-1 at T-Mobile Arena on Tuesday.
Lavoie scored at 8:01 of the third period, finishing the rebound of Ville Heinola’s shot on a 3-on-2 rush to give Vegas a 2-1 lead.
“There’s certain things that you have to do to get opportunities to score goals,” said Lavoie, who was playing in his 27th NHL game. “I was more worried on doing those things rather than just thinking I have to score a goal every time I’m on the ice.”
The forward was expected to be a healthy scratch, but goalie Carter Hart sustained an undisclosed injury at the morning skate. The Golden Knights recalled goalie Cameron Whitehead from Henderson of the American Hockey League to back up Adin Hill, and forward Jonas Rondbjerg was assigned to Henderson.
“I wasn’t thinking of playing tonight,” Lavoie said. “I wasn’t in the lineup, and then suddenly, just before I left the rink, they told me I was playing.”
Braeden Bowman, William Karlsson and Jack Eichel scored for the Golden Knights (9-4-1), who had lost three in a row (0-2-1). Hill made 25 saves starting in place of Hart.
“‘Hilly’ was real good,” Golden Knights coach Ryan Craig said. “He looked solid back there.
He looked like he was prepared and ready to play and good on him. As for ‘Lavy’ he takes advantage of an opportunity.
Sometimes that’s what happens, right? You don’t think about it.
You just go out and play.”
Shane Pinto scored for the Senators (8-5-0), who were coming off a 7-4 victory against the New York Rangers on Saturday. Jonas Johansson made 25 saves.
“We had our chances, just didn’t convert,” Pinto said. “That what happens.
You’ve got to just trust the process and hope that it goes in next time.”
Bowman put the Golden Knights ahead 1-0 at 19:49 of the second period on the power play. He scored after Ivan Barbashev’s shot fell short of the goal line where Bowman was parked.
The sequence started when Hill darted out to the face-off dot to beat Ottawa’s Ridly Greig to the puck, breaking his goalie stick in the ensuing collision.
“That was definitely the flying butterfly,” Bowman said of Hill. “Great awareness from him, smart play, and then it ended up getting an odd-man rush for us.
He kind of took the hit to make a play.”
Pinto tied the game 34 seconds into the third period on the power play. Drake Batherson recovered an errant pass near the blue line, skated up the boards and found Pinto coming down the middle of the ice to beat Hill on the rush to make it 1-1.
Karlsson scored an empty-net goal at 18:00 to make it 3-1; Eichel scored another empty-net 19:53 for the 4-1 final.
“You’re not going to come into a building like this and dominate the whole game,” Senators coach Travis Green said. “It’s a 2-1 game with two empty-netters.
Pretty good.”
NOTES: Batherson extended his point streak to five games. He has eight points (four goals, four assists) in that stretch.
Golden Knights forward Mitch Marner returned after missing the previous two games for the birth of his son. He had an assist in 21:40 of ice time.
