Pavel Dorofeyev, the Golden Knights' hero, shrugs off pain and praise: 'It's just my job'

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It’s all just a day in the office for Golden Knights’ winger Pavel Dorofeyev. “I mean, that’s what I got to do,” Dorofeyev said modestly, followed by a grin and a nervous laugh. “It’s just my job.” Dorofeyev’s two-goal night powered the Golden Knights to a 3-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks in Tuesday’s pivotal Game 5 at T-Mobile Arena. The victory gave Vegas a 3-2 series lead and pushed Anaheim to the brink of elimination. It was the type of postseason performance that can define a career, and it’s not even Dorofeyev’s first of these playoffs. The 25-year-old, who led Vegas with 37 goals during the regular season, scored a hat trick in Game 5 of the first-round series against Utah. Tuesday’s outing may have been an even more complete effort from the rising star. “He doesn’t say much. He just goes and plays,” Vegas coach John Tortorella said of Dorofeyev. “The puck just seems to follow him. He’s a good player, a good two-way player.” Off the ice, Dorofeyev is quiet and unassuming. On it, he’s a killer with the puck on his stick. “Obviously he’s an elite shooter, so any time he’s ripping the thing, it’s huge for our team,” said veteran winger Brandon Saad, who has 27 playoff goals over his 10-year NHL career. “What a shot.” Dorofeyev opened the scoring for the Golden Knights late in the first period. Vegas was on the power play when a missed shot rimmed around the boards and onto the stick of Anaheim’s Chris Kreider. For a moment, it appeared Kreider might be able to thread a pass to his streaking teammate Alex Killorn for a shorthanded breakaway. Then Dorofeyev snuck up behind Kreider, lifted his stick and swiftly went the other way with the puck. He skated across the slot and whistled a shot past Ducks goaltender Lukáš Dostál to tie the game 1-1. “Nothing special there,” Dorofeyev said with a comedic nonchalance. “That’s usually what happens when you get a pickpocket from a guy. The defensemen are expecting the puck to go out of the zone, and there it comes, the guy with the puck. So we kind of caught them.” It was Dorofeyev’s sixth goal in his last seven playoff games. Before that, he had struggled to find the same production that he had in the regular season. Dorofeyev’s 72 goals over the last two regular seasons don’t just lead all Vegas skaters; they are 16 clear of the next-closest player. But over his first 12 playoff games, Dorofeyev scored only once. He’s had a difficult time generating chances in the tight-checking environment and watched his ice time dwindle early in the first round against Utah. Heading into Game 4 of that series, it was fair to wonder if Dorofeyev’s sharp-shooting would translate to playoff hockey. The seven games since have proved that notion laughable. Not only has he scored, but the totality of Dorofeyev’s game has improved by leaps and bounds. No play exemplifies that more than the shot he blocked midway through the second period of Game 5. Ducks defender Jackson LaCombe unleashed a bomb of a slap shot from the point, and it struck Dorofeyev on the inside of his knee. He immediately dropped to the ice in pain, and Golden Knights trainer Kyle Moore rushed out to him. Dorofeyev eventually got up and skated off under his own power, putting very little weight on his right leg, and was helped by teammates down the tunnel to the dressing room. “I just blocked a shot,” he said. “It’s kind of a s— part of my job, but it hurts more when I miss it.” After nine minutes of action, Dorofeyev returned to the bench. When asked about being in the dressing room, he downplayed it, as he did with his goal. “I just got myself together and got back on the ice,” he explained. “It was kind of just regular stuff, like when you get something. Let them see it, test it out first, and then make a decision.” Was there a moment he thought he might not be able to return? “No, not really,” he said, “It was just kind of a sting in my leg.” Dorofeyev wasn’t just able to play. He was great. “Massive game for Pav,” Vegas defenseman Rasmus Andersson said. “I think everyone who watches our games knows that he’s an elite goal scorer, and in the playoffs, sometimes you have to eat a shot or take a hit to make a play. Massive block by him, and to come back and score the OT winner is massive. It’s big plays in big moments.” Minutes into overtime, Dorofeyev found open ice on the weak side of the Anaheim net. Jack Eichel fired a shot at Dostál from the corner, and the puck rebounded off his pad and bounced toward Dorofeyev. Dorofeyev knocked the puck out of the air, just underneath the crossbar and perfectly into the top shelf of the net. “It was so good,” he said with a smile. “Scored my first OT (goal) in the playoffs. It’s awesome.” It was actually the second time he had shot the puck into the net in overtime in the playoffs: His overtime winner against Utah in Game 4 of the first round was nullified by an offside call following an official review. On Tuesday night, it counted. “To be honest with you, I can’t even tell you what happened there,” he explained. “I just saw the puck with my stick on it, and thankfully it got into the net.” Dorofeyev is now tied for the league lead with seven goals this postseason, and that production couldn’t be better timed for his bank account. The fifth-year player is set to be a restricted free agent this summer and is due a massive raise from his $1.835 million salary this season. The new number could be in the $6 million to $8 million per year range, and with every performance like Tuesday’s, it keeps going up. Ask Dorofeyev, and he’ll tell you he’s just doing his job. Thankfully for the Golden Knights, who have been without captain Mark Stone for the last two games, Dorofeyev is doing it well. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms