Golden Knights' struggles continue in loss to Hurricanes

It was another frustrating game for the Vegas Golden Knights as they came up short in a 3-2 loss against the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday night at the Lenovo Center.

Things got off to quite a slow start as neither team was able to find the net in the opening period. Goalie Adin Hill got the start for the Golden Knights, making his return to action after Ilya Samsonov got the start in the squad's last game against the Predators.

After the quiet first period, Tomas Hertl finally managed to break the ice for Vegas as he delivered his 13th score of the season to give them the early advantage.

It was Hertl's second goal in the last three games as well as his fourth point in that time span. He currently ranks fourth on the team in total points.

Carolina would manage to find the answer, however, as Seth Jarvis came through to tie the game with 8:03 remaining in the second period. It was a big game for the 22-year-old, who would add yet another score later on in the contest to help push his squad over the top.

The game headed to the third tied at 1 before the Hurricanes quickly took their first lead of the night less than a minute into the frame. Jackson Blake scored his 10th of the season on a fortunate deflection off the stick of Golden Knights' defenseman Noah Hanifin as the puck sailed into the net.

The Hurricanes used the second goal of the night from Seth Jarvis to further pad their lead as they took control of a 3-1 game with about 14 minutes remaining.

Shea Theodore managed to help Vegas make it a 3-2 game as he took advantage of a Golden Knights' power play to deliver his fifth score of the year.

It was Theodore's first goal since December 15 as he fired in a 53-foot rocket from the center of the ice that threaded the needle. Theodore is third on the Golden Knights with 37 points.

His goal, however, was the last of the game for either side as Vegas could not manage to break even over the final 10 minutes of the period. The loss moved the Golden Knights to 11-7-3 on the road this season.

After the contest, Theodore spoke on the team's lack of ability to build on their strong start as they fell apart over the final couple of periods.

"Overall, I think we have to build off our start," he said. "I thought we had a lot of good opportunities to score and we didn't cash in as many as we would've liked. We have to stay on course and continue to build."

Head coach Bruce Cassidy commented on the team's misfortunes in the third period and their lack of focus. 

"In the third, things are getting magnified, the mistakes we make," he said. "Tough puck luck for [Hanifin], it's an own goal, he's trying to break up a play and we're not getting that at the other end. But the third goal is the one that we took ourselves out of the game [with] a bit."

Vegas is now 29-13-3 this year, tied with the Edmonton Oilers for first place in the Pacific Division. Edmonton has gained ground on Vegas over the past few games thanks to their recent struggles.

The Golden Knights will have a quick turnaround as they head to Chicago for a matchup with the Blackhawks on Saturday evening. Chicago currently sits at 14-28-3 and is in last place in the Central Divison, giving Vegas a promising chance to turn their momentum around.

Puck drop is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. PT.