LAS VEGAS — Jack Eichel poked the puck around Columbus defenseman Adam Boqvist, corralled it and quickly fired it off the far-side post and in for his third goal of the game in the Golden Knights’ 7-2 blowout win over the Blue Jackets Sunday afternoon.
Fans showered the ice with hats as Eichel skated back to the bench. Coach Bruce Cassidy told Eichel to go pick his favorite of the bunch for a new team tradition, so Eichel skated over and started looking through a plastic bin filled with caps that had been picked up off the ice.
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Eichel grabbed a black hat with white skate laces and the Golden Knights wordmark, and tossed it to team equipment manager Chris Davidson-Adams. Following the game, it was hanging in his dressing room stall, but its final destination is still to be determined.
“Butch (Cassidy) was saying he’s starting a new tradition,” Eichel explained. “You get a hat trick, take one of the hats and hang it up. I’ve never done it before, but it’s a cool tradition. I think it’s something he’s done in the past so maybe we’ll continue doing it.”
Jack Eichel nets a hat trick and takes one of the caps that was thrown on the ice for a souvenir 😂 🧢
— The Athletic NHL (@TheAthleticNHL) March 19, 2023
Eichel’s hat trick was Vegas’ first at T-Mobile Arena since Reilly Smith did it on May 8, 2021, and the first under Cassidy. He explained that there was a similar tradition of players choosing their favorite hat to save when he coached the Bruins.
“Go choose the one you like best. We’ll find a spot in the locker room somewhere, or the trainer’s room, or somewhere to hang it up,” Cassidy said. “It will be a little bit of a tradition. You can sign it so over the years, maybe 30 years from now someone will say ‘Oh, Jack Eichel got one on March 19,’ or whatever.
“They had something like that in Boston and I thought it was cool because some of them were very old. So let’s get it going and see if it sticks. You never know.”
After a bit of a slow start on Sunday, Vegas poured in four goals in less than seven minutes late in the second period — including two by Eichel — to pull away.
“I think I passed up a few chances in the first period to shoot pucks, so I’m just trying to shoot it a little bit and it’s nice to see it go in,” Eichel said.
The dominant win over a struggling Blue Jackets squad was exactly what the Golden Knights needed heading into a stretch run where the vast majority of their games will be against divisional opponents chasing playoff spots.
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“You can’t lose to a team that’s in the bottom of the standings,” said Smith, who added an assist on Sunday to extend his point streak to a career-high eight games. “I think we did a good job, especially at the tail end of the second period, getting pucks to the net. I think we were pretty fortunate with some of the bounces, but they go a long way when you’re able to push a team down and take away their confidence like that.”
Eichel wasn’t the only player participating in a team tradition. Rookie goalie Jiri Patera, who stopped 35 of 37 shots to earn the victory in his second career NHL start, was wearing an Elvis Presley wig and glasses afterwards in the dressing room. That honor goes to the player of the game after wins this season, decided by the players themselves.
“He made some really big saves for us, especially at the end of the first period,” Smith said of Patera. “Our game kind of slipped up a little bit and every time it did he was great. He was probably our best player tonight.”
Vegas has posted a league-best record of 14-3-2 since the All-Star break, and they’ve done it with contributions from all across the lineup. Just on Sunday, they received another goal from defenseman Zach Whitecloud, who made a great play to knock the puck out of mid-air and into the Columbus net, and rookie Pavel Dorofeyev scored and assisted on another goal.
“One good thing is the contributions throughout the lineup,” Eichel said. “All our defensemen, all our goaltenders. We’ve had five goalies play for us and I think all of them have done a great job. Different guys are stepping up and playing well, and that’s what you need.”
The vibe around the team has been excellent as of late, and Cassidy likes the new traditions being created.
“I think it brings teams closer together when you do some of that,” he said. “It allows people to maybe show some of their personality that aren’t always the stars of the team. It’s good for everybody.”
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The cohesion in the dressing room is noticeable. Winning, of course, cures all and the team has done plenty of that. The win over Columbus keeps Vegas atop the Pacific Division with 92 points, which is 15 clear of the current playoff cut line.
Now comes a trip to Western Canada with stops in Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton, where playoff seeding will be on the line. The good news for the Golden Knights is they are getting production from everywhere and have a bonded, tight-knit dressing room full of players passing around an Elvis wig.
“The guys all enjoy each other’s company and little things like that can go a long way,” Eichel said. “Whatever can bring the group closer. It’s been a lot of fun coming to the rink and hanging out with these guys every day.”
(Photo: Lucas Peltier / USA Today)
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