The Golden Knights opened the Western Conference Final with a 4-2 win over the Avalanche in Game 1 on Wednesday night at Ball Arena. The Golden Knights lead the best-of-seven series, 1-0.
HOW IT WENT DOWN
After a scoreless opening frame, Dylan Coghlan gave Vegas the first lead of the night with 7:31 remaining in the second period. Brandon Saad sent the puck over to Coghlan, who ripped a wrist shot past Scott Wedgewood to open the scoring. Less than three minutes later on the man advantage, Mitch Marner found Pavel Dorofeyev in space, and Dorofeyev buried a wrist shot past Wedgewood for his fourth power-play goal of the postseason, extending Vegas' lead 2-0. The Golden Knights stretched their advantage to three 1:34 into the third when Brett Howden knocked down a rebound with his glove before backhanding the puck into an open net. Valeri Nichushkin put a tally on the board for Colorado at 5:53 in the third period to make it a 3-1 game. With 2:21 left in the contest, Gabriel Landeskog cut Colorado's deficit to one. In the final minute, Nic Dowd buried an empty-net goal, sealing the 4-2 victory for the Golden Knights. Dowd beat everyone down the ice to negate the icing on Jack Eichel's long-range attempt, scoring his first goal of the series. Carter Hart turned aside 36 of the 38 shots he faced to lift Vegas to their first win in the Western Conference Final.
TOP PERFORMERS
Dylan Coghlan: Coghlan scored the first goal of the Western Conference Final, marking his first career NHL postseason goal.
Pavel Dorofeyev: Dorofeyev scored his NHL-leading 10th goal of the playoffs on the power play to extend the Golden Knights' lead to two.
Brett Howden: Howden scored his third game-winning goal of the postseason, tied for the most in franchise history, and extended his road goal streak to six, becoming the sixth player in NHL history to reach the mark.
Carter Hart: Hart stopped 36 shots and posted a .947 save percentage for his ninth victory of this postseason.
SERIES AT A GLANCE
All times PST
Game 1: Vegas Golden Knights 4, Colorado Avalanche 2 | HIGHLIGHTS
Game 2: Friday, May 22, 5 p.m. | Ball Arena
Game 3: Sunday, May 24, 5 p.m. | T-Mobile Arena | BUY TICKETS
Game 4: Tuesday, May 26, 6 p.m. | T-Mobile Arena | BUY TICKETS
Game 5 (if necessary): Thursday, May 28, 5 p.m. | Ball Arena
Game 6 (if necessary): Saturday, May 30, 5 p.m. | T-Mobile Arena | *BUY TICKETS*
Game 7 (if necessary): Monday, June 1, 5 p.m. | Ball Arena
VGK STATS OF THE KNIGHT
Mitch Marner leads the league with 19 points (7G, 12A) in the playoffs.
Jack Eichel continues to pace the NHL with 15 playoff helpers.
Pavel Dorofeyev became the fifth player in franchise history to record double-digit goals during a single postseason run.
Carter Hart has a total of 358 saves, which ranks him second in the league, saving 67 of the last 70 shots in his last two outings.
Brett Howden extended his road goal streak to six games, the longest stretch in franchise history.
Howden has netted seven road goals this postseason, the second most in Golden Knights history, and became the second Vegas player to record back-to-back game-winning goals in the playoffs.
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 will battle the Avalanche in Game 2 of the Western Conference Final at Ball Arena on Friday at 5:00 p.m PT. Tune into the Pregame Show on The Spot-Vegas 34 or KnightTime+ at 4:30 p.m. PT, then catch all the action on ESPN. Listen live on FOX Sports Las Vegas 94.7/1340 and Deportes Vegas 1460.
