Vegas blanks Sharks 7-0 in Game 1 of 2nd-round series

LAS VEGAS - Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 33 shots for his third shutout of the playoffs, and the Vegas Golden Knights went on to beat the Sharks 7-0 Thursday night in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals.

Cody Eakin, Erik Haula and Jonathan Marchessault scored 1:31 apart early in the first period to get Vegas going. Alex Tuch, Shea Theodore, Colin Miller and James Neal also scored, Reilly Smith and William Karlsson each had three assists, and Marchessault and David Perron added two each.

Fleury, who improved to 5-0 in the playoffs, got his 13th career shutout in the playoffs - and second straight.

The Golden Knights, the first team from the opening round to advance, showed no sign of rust after having nine days off since their first-round sweep over the Kings.

It has now outscored its opposition 14-3 in five games.

San Jose, which swept Anaheim in the first round, looked out of sorts by the time Vegas put its first three in the net just 6:02 into the game, and the Sharks lost their cool early in the third period, when Evander Kane was ejected for cross-checking Pierre-Edouard Bellemare in the face after a whistle.

Martin Jones, who stopped 128 of 132 shots in the first round against the Ducks, was pulled a little more than three minutes into the second period after allowing five goals on 13 shots. Backup goalie Aaron Dell came in and finished with 19 saves.

It was the Sharks’ worst loss in playoff history. Detroit blanked San Jose 6-0 in the 1995 Western Conference semifinals.

Eakin started the scoring barrage when he deflected Brayden McNabb’s wrist shot from the point past Jones 4:31 into the game. Before the public-address announcer could trumpet the game’s first goal, Haula finished Tuch’s rush to the net 26 seconds later with a sniper past Jones to double Vegas’ lead.