Ducks’ season ends with Game 6 loss to Golden Knights

ANAHEIM — The basic concept in hockey that the game begins when the puck drops eluded the Ducks all season and, fittingly, a sluggish start ended their campaign on Thursday night at Honda Center.

They were lanced by the Vegas Golden Knights, 5-1, and eliminated from the playoffs in Game 6 of their second-round series after falling behind by three goals in the first period.

Their first game facing elimination went much like their first opportunity to close out a series in Game 5 of Round 1 against the Edmonton Oilers. In Edmonton, they also trailed by three at the first intermission en route to a 4-1 defeat.

But that merely delayed destiny, whereas this loss cemented their ill fate.

Mikael Granlund had the Ducks’ only goal. Lukáš Dostál had 16 saves, having made every postseason start.

Mitch Marner, who leads the playoffs with 18 points after pouring in 11 in this series, scored a goal, set up another by Brett Howden and was on the ice for a third by Shea Theodore, who added an assist. Pavel Dorofeyev deposited two insurance goals. Carter Hart stopped 31 shots and allowed two goals or fewer in five of six games in the series.

In all, the Ducks surrendered the first goal in 49 of 82 regular-season games, eight of 12 playoff contests and 57 of 94 matches overall.

Their first season under Coach Joel Quenneville was a twisting, turning, end-over-end journey through disappointments, rallies, peaks and valleys. They led the NHL in comeback wins of virtually every kind and amassed two seven-game win streaks. But they also went through a nine-game tailspin that threatened their aspirations and they later backed into the playoffs, retroceding first place in the division to Vegas and slipping behind Edmonton.

Vegas scored 62 seconds after the opening draw before completing its collection with a shorthanded goal at 8:30 and a power-play marker at 17:19.

The Ducks gave up the game’s first goal on its first shot yet again – they did so 14 times in 2025-26, including four instances in the playoffs – but they could hardly be blamed in this instance as Marner scored perhaps the postseason’s most spectacular goal to date.

Former Duck William Karlsson’s stretch pass from the left faceoff dot of the Vegas zone to the Ducks’ blue line sprang Marner for a partial breakaway. Jackson LaCombe hounded him from behind, even raising his stick between Marner’s legs at one point. That was exactly where he’d score from, faking a backhand at one post before putting the puck between his legs and past Dostál inside the other post for an awe-inspiring tally.

After being out-skated, out-battled and out-shot 5-1, the Ducks drew a penalty. Yet even that favored Vegas as a zone entry gone awry led to an errant rim-around pass that found none other than Marner. He and Howden were off on a two-on-two rush down a man, with Howden slipping LaCombe and getting to the back post for a one-timer. Howden, who scored just 12 goals during the season, led the postseason with eight at that point before being surpassed by Dorofeyev.

Theodore made it 3-0 when Tomáš Hertl’s offensive-zone faceoff win came to him. The one-time Ducks first-round draft pick whipped a shot through traffic from just above the slot for his fifth point of the series. Vegas outscored the Ducks 12-2 in the series with Theodore on the ice, even more disparate than Marner’s 15-7 advantage.

The second period saw a decidedly stronger push from the Ducks and they finally got on the board with 7:14 left. During a power play, Troy Terry stickhandled through Marner and Theodore on the right wing to open up the left side for Granlund, whom he found with a deft dish. Granlund’s fifth goal of the playoffs – shot from high in the circle – made it 3-1.

Yet that momentum was short-lived as Dorofeyev drove in the dagger 2:52 into the final frame.

Defenseman John Carlson made a weak play off his forehand along the left-wing wall that was devoured by Ivan Barbashev, who snuck the puck past Granlund to Dorofeyev for a goal from the slot.

Dorofeyev scored again, short side from a sharp angle, with 6:28 to play. He has nine goals this spring and five in his past three appearances.

The Ducks exceeded expectations overall, not only making the playoffs for the first time in eight seasons but prevailing in a series for the first time in nine. Meanwhile, Vegas shook off a season in which momentum was tough to come by, barreling hard into a postseason that will now pit them against the Colorado Avalanche in the Western Conference finals.

It’s the fifth time in their nine seasons that the Golden Knights have reached the conference finals.

More to come on this story.