Montreal –
A foul by exceptional goalkeeper Marc-Andre Fleury cost the Vegas Golden Knights a near-certain victory in the NHL playoffs against loser Montreal Canadiens.
After an equalizer was made possible by Florey’s error to 2:2 with less than two minutes left, Josh Anderson scored a second goal in overtime and decided the match 3:2 for the Canadians. In the semi-finals en route to the Stanley Cup Final, the Canadians are now 2-1 ahead, although they had to work without their coach Dominique Ducharme, who only tested positive for coronavirus on match day. The team needs four wins to reach the finals.
“It was a tough situation,” Anderson said. “If you lose your coach, it’s obviously difficult.” It is not clear when Ducharme will be able to work with the team again. According to General Manager Mark Bergevin, he is free of symptoms. Ducharme received his second coronavirus vaccination on June 9.
Fleury, who represented national ice hockey goalkeeper Philipp Grobauer, is a nominee for the main round goalkeeper award, and was unable to control a pass along the board and played the ball through his legs in front of the empty goal. Anderson dusted off and equalized after taking two lead ahead of the Golden Knights. The fourth game in the series returns in Montreal on Sunday.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210619-99-56867/4 (dpa)