Golden Knights vs. Ducks Game 6: Key takeaways as Vegas advances to Western Conference final

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Vegas is back in the conference finals after a first-round loss to the Dallas Stars in 2024 and a second-round loss to the Edmonton Oilers in 2025. In order to play for the Stanley Cup for the first time since winning it in 2023, the Golden Knights must defeat the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Colorado Avalanche. Game 1 is Wednesday night at Denver’s Ball Arena. The Golden Knights are now 6-0 all-time in Game 6s after winning a Game 5 to take a 3-2 series lead. Shea Theodore scored a goal in the first period to give Vegas a 3-0 lead. After Anaheim closed to within 3-1, Pavel Dorofeyev scored two third-period goals. Golden Knights goalie Carter Hart stopped 31 of 32 shots. Marner’s monstrous start to Game 6 continued his strong postseason. The forward, who was acquired from the Toronto Maple Leafs last summer, increased his playoffs-leading point total to 18 with his fifth multi-point effort in his last seven games. He had 11 points in the six games against Anaheim. Mikael Granlund had a power-play goal in the second period for the Ducks, who were making their first playoff appearance in eight years. The first-round victory over the Oilers was Anaheim’s first playoff series win since 2017. Howden scored his eighth goal of the playoffs on Thursday. He has already nearly matched his postseason goal total for his entire career prior to this season (nine), in only 12 games. The goal, a backdoor one-timer on a feed from Marner, came with Vegas short-handed in the first period. It was Howden’s third short-handed goal of the playoffs, which tied the record for the most in a single postseason in NHL history. Howden joined seven other players, including Wayne Gretzky, atop the list. Howden now has three short-handed goals in his last nine games, which matches his career total in 489 regular-season NHL games. The first period was an absolute nightmare for the Ducks. It was about more than Marner leaving them spellbound with his highlight goal. Or the winger’s brilliant setup to Howden. Anaheim was outplayed in every facet. Lukáš Dostál allowed a goal on the first shot of the game for the 14th time between the regular season and playoffs. It brought back memories of a rough Game 3, in which he was pulled after the first period following an early goal to Theodore and two other Vegas scores. Dostál did stay in Thursday after he allowed three goals on nine shots in the first. A chance to tie the game, after a penalty to Golden Knights forward Cole Smith, instead became Howden’s short-handed goal and a 2-0 deficit. Theodore added a goal five seconds into a Vegas power play. In the final seconds of the first period, a restless Honda Center crowd that had been muted let out some audible boos. The Golden Knights have reached the NHL’s final four for the fifth time in nine seasons, the most of any team since 2017. It was Vegas’ 70th postseason win since it entered the league, which also leads all teams during that span, and its 14th playoff series victory. The franchise has enjoyed unprecedented success upon its inception. Vegas claimed its fifth regular-season Pacific Division title this year and is now four wins from a third Western Conference championship banner. The Golden Knights reached the Western Conference final in 2018, 2020, 2023 and now 2026. They were also among the final four teams remaining in 2022, which included an alternate playoff format with a shortened season. The Ducks’ top line of Leo Carlsson centering Chris Kreider and Troy Terry had a quiet ending to the series after a very productive opening round against Edmonton. It was a tougher road for the trio after they combined for 20 points in the six games against the Oilers — including one goal and two assists from each in the series-clinching Game 6. All three went scoreless in games 4 and 5. Carlsson and Terry did combine to assist on Granlund’s power-play tally on Thursday, but the effectiveness of Anaheim’s top line waned as the series went on. Ducks coach Joel Quenneville replaced Terry, who has been playing hurt for the last few months, with Beckett Sennecke to start the second period. Terry played on the second line with Granlund and Alex Killorn. Quenneville had to make changes before Game 6 because Ryan Poehling was unavailable. He left Game 5 in the first period after a late hit by Vegas defenseman Brayden McNabb, which earned him a one-game suspension. Mason McTavish moved back to center to fill Poehling’s spot, with Jeffrey Viel joining the line and Jansen Harkins playing for the first time since Game 3. In each of their playoff series to this point, the Golden Knights were not the better skating team. There were even moments when the Utah Mammoth and Ducks looked like they might skate circles around the older Vegas squad. But in the postseason, when margins are slim and games are decided by a play or two, the Golden Knights have proven they can consistently make fewer mistakes than their opponents. That is partially a product of the heaps of experience this group has together in these types of moments. It’s also a benefit of having so many high-hockey IQ players on the roster. From Marner to William Karlsson, Jack Eichel, Tomas Hertl, Shea Theodore, Noah Hanifin and others, Vegas is overflowing with defensively responsible skaters who have an aptitude for smart decisions in key moments. Throughout this series, they simply waited for Anaheim to make a misstep with the puck and then made them pay for it. The goal by Dorofeyev that essentially iced the game was a great example, but it was only one of many in this series. The Ducks made several poor decisions trying to break the puck out, and one eventually landed it on Dorofeyev’s stick in front. He buried the shot before Dostál or the rest of his defenders could even react, and the game was over. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms