There are times you forget Ivan Barbashev can dangle the way he did in Game 2.
Then he does what he did in the second period.
“It isn’t me,” Barbashev said. “I don’t usually do it as much. I’ll just try to play with whatever comes to me.”
The Vegas Golden Knights forward has goals in back-to-back games and has been one of the team’s consistent offensive threats through two games.
They head to Salt Lake City for Friday’s Game 3 against the Utah Mammoth with adversity staring them in the face for the first time under coach John Tortorella.
They might have to rely on a player like Barbashev, impacting the game in multiple ways, to set the tone.
He’s been one of the Knights’ most impactful players with goals in back-to-back games and among the team’s leaders in hits.
Barbashev can always impact a game physically.
He turned it up in Game 1 with nine hits. He capped off the 4-2 win with the empty-netter that sealed it.
Game 2 saw the skill that he can display from time to time.
He’s the complement on the top line that knows how to get the puck to Jack Eichel from the half wall. He also knows where to go when captain Mark Stone has the puck.
Eichel has called him the prototypical read-and-react linemate that has the right hockey sense to make the right play.
Take his goal in Game 2 for example.
Not only did he force the turnover in the offensive zone, but retreated back to the blue line quick enough to allow everyone back onside.
Once done, Barbashev weaves his way through the remaining Utah traffic, finds the soft spot to fire a backhand on Utah goalie Karel Vejmelka and finish weak side.
The goal was huge at the point in the game. Utah took a 2-1 lead just a minute earlier, stealing all momentum in a second period that saw little to no flow at all due to penalties and stoppages.
“I think they were cheating with Jack and (Stone),” Barbashev said. “Most players would try to kick it out. I was getting toward the left side … and just a lot of room to go through.”
Minutes prior, Barbashev weaved through the Utah defense and created a dangerous chance, but Vejmelka read him the entire way.
It’s a reminder that Barbashev can do that, especially after a career-high 61 points in the regular season.
Barbashev, much like the other members of the top six, has had to stay ready at a moment’s notice whenever Tortorella swaps the lineup.
Tortorella hasn’t been afraid to load up the top line with Eichel, Stone and Mitch Marner.
While that line has done well with possession and offensive-zone time, it hasn’t produced on the scoreboard.
Tortorella said he’s going to assess the use of that line as it goes. But with Barbashev being the longtime mainstay, he does the little things to complement whichever line for whatever role.
“He’s playing well,” Tortorella said. “He’s a good 200-foot player. Certainly a good, honest, physical player who gives us some good minutes.”
With the series shifting to Delta Center for Game 3 — the first home playoff game in Utah history — this might be suited for a more balanced lineup unless the Knights are scrounging for offense.
The Knights are honing in on Utah’s speed after it broke them down in the second half of Game 2, a 3-2 loss to Utah.
The Mammoth took control when winger Dylan Guenther and center Logan Cooley utilized their forecheck and caught the Knights flat-footed on occasion.
“We gave them a lot of opportunities,” Barbashev said. “I think they had a lot of room with the puck. They took advantage of it. It’s a really skilled team. They can make plays. I think we gave them too much time.”
Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.
Up next
Who: Golden Knights at Mammoth
What: Game 3, first round (series tied 1-1)
When: 6:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Delta Center, Salt Lake City
TV: KMCC-34, TBS, HBO Max
Radio: KFLG 94.7 FM/KKGK 1340 AM
Line: Knights -115; total 6
