The Vegas Golden Knights took down the Anaheim Ducks, 5-1, in Game 6 of the Second Round series on Thursday night at Honda Center to win the series, 4-2, and clinch their spot in the Western Conference Finals.
HOW IT WENT DOWN
Mitch Marner gave the Golden Knights an early lead with a breakaway goal just over a minute into the contest after he received a long stretch pass from William Karlsson and went backhand-forehand through his legs to beat Lukas Dostal. Brett Howden doubled Vegas’ lead at 8:30 of the first period with his league-leading third short-handed tally of the playoffs after taking a backdoor feed from Marner. Vegas stretched their lead to 3-0 with 2:41 remaining in the frame as Tomas Hertl’s offensive-zone draw win directed to Shea Theodore at the blue line, who fired a wrist shot top-shelf past Dostal. The Ducks cut Vegas’ advantage to 3-1 when Mikael Granlund converted with 7:14 left in the second period. Pavel Dorofeyev restored the three-goal edge just under three minutes into the final frame with a wrist shot from the right circle after a forecheck takeaway and dish from Ivan Barbashev. Dorofeyev followed up with his second goal of the night with 6:28 remaining to put Vegas up, 5-1. Carter Hart saved 31-of-32 shots to seal the series-clinching victory.
TOP PERFORMERS
Mitch Marner: Marner tallied a goal and an assist to extend his league-leading point total to 18 (7G, 11A).
Pavel Dorofeyev: Dorofeyev lit the lamp twice and recorded his fifth goal in three games, taking the lead for the most goals in the league this postseason with nine.
Brett Howden: Howden notched his eighth goal of the playoffs, second only to Dorofeyev for the most in the NHL.
Shea Theodore: Theodore netted his 19th playoff goal since joining the Golden Knights, the most by any defenseman in club history.
Carter Hart: Hart saved 31 of the 32 shots he faced in the victory, and his eight wins this postseason are tied for the most in the NHL.
SERIES AT A GLANCE
All times PST
Game 1: Vegas Golden Knights 3, Anaheim Ducks 1 | HIGHLIGHTS
Game 2: Anaheim Ducks 3, Vegas Golden Knights 1 | HIGHLIGHTS
Game 3: Vegas Golden Knights 6, Anaheim Ducks 2 | HIGHLIGHTS
Game 4: Anaheim Ducks 4, Vegas Golden Knights 3 | HIGHLIGHTS
Game 5: Vegas Golden Knights 3, Anaheim Ducks 2 OT | HIGHLIGHTS
Game 6 Vegas Golden Knights 5, Anaheim Ducks 1 | HIGHLIGHTS
VGK STATS OF THE KNIGHT
Mitch Marner’s seven goals in the postseason are tied for the second-most in Vegas franchise history for a player in his first year.
Marner became the second Golden Knight in club history to register a multipoint outing in consecutive series-clinching games.
Brett Howden has potted three short-handed goals, tying the NHL record for most in a single playoff run.
Howden has scored in five straight road games, tied for the longest run of its kind in Vegas history.
Pavel Dorofeyev became the second player in Vegas history to record back-to-back multi-goal games in the playoffs.
The Golden Knights have recorded 12 series-clinching wins in their franchise history, the most in the NHL since 2017-18
WHEN VGK WINS, YOU WIN!
Fans can receive six free boneless or traditional wings at any Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant location throughout the greater Vegas metro area with a $10+ qualifying pre-tax purchase of food and non-alcoholic beverages, available for two days after any 2025-2026 VGK Win.
LOOKING AHEAD
The Golden Knights travel to Colorado to face off with the Avalanche in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals on Wednesday, with puck drop set for 5 p.m. PT. Tune into the Pregame Show on Vegas 34 and then catch all the action on ESPN. Listen live on FOX Sports Las Vegas 94.7/1340 and Deportes Vegas 1460.
