The seeds of the Golden Knights’ collapse, which came to a painful conclusion Tuesday in San Jose, California, actually were planted two weeks ago during the first game of what would become an instant-classic series.
That night, Sharks forward Evander Kane backed up his on-ice trash talk with two points, while fourth-line agitator Micheal Haley continually got under the Knights’ skin by running goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury.
The Knights ended up with 34 minutes in penalties, and the 5-2 loss dragged them into a highly charged Western Conference quarterfinal showdown that saw both teams come unglued at various times.