ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) 鈥� Jack Eichel and Mark Stone made clear they belong together, on a Vegas first line that can be one of the most potent in these .
Eichel and Stone each had a goal and an assist and Adin Hill made 29 saves for the Golden Knights, who became the first Western Conference team to reach the second round with a 3-2 victory in Game 6 that ousted the Minnesota Wild on Thursday night.
鈥淭hey gave us everything we could handle,鈥� Eichel said. 鈥淭hey played so hard.鈥�
Shea Theodore scored on a power play early in the first period, Eichel got his first goal of the series late in the second period and Stone had the critical late score for Vegas, which will face Edmonton in the second round. The Oilers beat Los Angeles in six games.
The Wild have lost nine consecutive series, tied for the third-longest streak in NHL history, according to Sportradar. Their skid of eight straight one-and-done appearances is tied for the second-longest in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
The Wild, who last made it out of the first round 10 years ago, got two goals from Ryan Hartman, including a wraparound with 3:27 left that came 31 seconds after Stone had given the Golden Knights a two-goal lead.
Stone, who set up Eichel with a long pass out of the zone that was inches out of reach of the stick of Kirill Kaprizov after he dived to try to prevent the breakaway that beat goalie Filip Gustavsson, had four points in the last three games.
鈥淓veryone stepped up at different parts of the series and found ways to contribute,鈥� Eichel said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 how you win this time of year.鈥�
Neither Stone nor Eichel recorded a single point , thanks in part to the bruising Wild who frequently took away the middle of the ice and most of the Golden Knights' opportunities to use their speed.
Coach Bruce Cassidy shuffled the lines for Game 4, which helped ignite more of an attack. The in Game 6 prompted Cassidy to reunite Eichel and Stone in the top trio alongside William Karlsson.
鈥淭hey got better as the series went on,鈥� Cassidy said.
Hartman tied the game for the Wild with 4 seconds left in the first period, a goal safe from replay review unlike his go-ahead score with 1:15 remaining in regulation that was revoked for an offside call after Vegas challenged.
The Golden Knights went on to win their second straight overtime decision, before finishing off the Wild with a third consecutive one-goal win.
鈥淲e hear the noise of getting by the first round. We understand it,鈥� Wild left wing Marcus Foligno said. 鈥淲e really felt like we could鈥檝e done it this year, and that鈥檚 the disappointing part, right?鈥�
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AP NHL:
Dave Campbell, The Associated Press
