Golden Knights’ Playoff Gameday Preview: Game 1 vs. Ducks – The Hockey Writers –

Welcome to Round 2 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs! For the fifth time in their nine seasons of existence, the Vegas Golden Knights are playing in the second round. The Pacific Division champions continue their quest for the franchise’s second Stanley Cup. Standing in their way in Round 2 is the Anaheim Ducks, a team looking to continue their Cinderella season. Let’s jump into the Game 1 preview and start the fun.

Golden Knights’ Playoff Gameday Preview: Game 1 vs. Ducks (Series Tied 0-0)

Both teams are coming off a six-game series victory. The Golden Knights defeated the Utah Mammoth, while the Ducks ended the Edmonton Oilers’ reign atop the Western Conference.

This is the first time the Golden Knights and Ducks are meeting in the playoffs. The Ducks had the Golden Knights’ number in the regular season, winning all three games. However, Vegas leads the all-time series, 27-10-1.

Golden Knights’ Game 1 Projected Lineup (Subject to Change)

• Ivan Barbashev – Jack Eichel – Pavel Dorofeyev
• Brett Howden – Mitch Marner – Mark Stone
• Reilly Smith – Tomas Hertl – Keegan Kolesar
• Cole Smith – Nic Dowd – Colton Sissons
• Brayden McNabb – Shea Theodore
• Noah Hanifin – Rasmus Andersson
• Jeremy Lauzon – Kaedan Korczak
• Carter Hart/Adin Hill

Golden Knights’ Playoff Team Leaders

Eichel leads the team in points (nine) and assists (eight). Howden and Dorofeyev are tied for the lead in goals with four each. Smith leads with 10 penalty minutes. Smith is also tied with Marner with the best plus/minus rating (plus-5).

Hart was the only goaltender to see action for Vegas in Round 1. In six games, Hart posted a 2.72 goals- against average (GAA) alongside a .898 save percentage (SV%).

Storyline #1 – Do the Game-Breaking Performers Carry Over to Round 2?

Both teams saw game-breaking performances that led to victory. Jackson LaCombe was easily the standout Ducks’ player. The 25-year-old defenseman led the Ducks with nine points and played elite-level hockey on both sides of the ice. Perhaps his biggest contribution was helping slow down Connor McDavid, who scored just one goal in the series. Furthermore, LaCombe averaged 27 minutes of ice time per game.

For the Golden Knights, it is hard to pick just one game-breaking player from Round 1. There were many of them, but Brett Howden was easily the standout. His four goals included two shorthanded goals, one of which was the overtime winner in Game 5.

With a new series starting, will these players continue their game-breaking play? Will others join them? If they slow down, will others step up?

Storyline #2 – Experience Galore On Both Sides

The Golden Knights defeated a Mammoth team that was lacking postseason experience. That will not be the case with the Ducks. The Ducks are a young team, but they still have a roster full of playoff experience. Alex Killorn, Chris Kreider, Mikael Granlund, John Carlson, and Jacob Trouba are playoff veterans. Furthermore, Killorn won the Stanley Cup twice with the Tampa Bay Lightning, while Carlson won with the Washington Capitals.

Thankfully for Vegas, they still have nine players from their 2023 championship team. Needless to say, experience is not the issue for either team.

Storyline #3 – The Coaching Battle

The experience story does not end on the bench. It is carried behind the bench to both head coaches. For the Ducks, Joel Quenneville has brought the team back to the playoffs. After knocking off the Oilers, the Ducks should be viewed as serious threats in the Western Conference. Quenneville knows a thing or two about making deep playoff runs. In fact, he knows three things about it, having led the Chicago Blackhawks to the Stanley Cup in 2010, 2013, and 2015.

Then there’s John Tortorella behind the Vegas bench. He took over very late in the season and led the team to a 7-0-1 finish to secure the division title. Like Quenneville, he has led a team to the Stanley Cup, doing so with the Lightning in 2004. Tortorella has definitely been a difference maker, but he is not above giving praise to his roster:

“The thing I love about this team is they just kept their heads down through the momentum swings against a really good, very well-coached hockey team, and just found our way.”

How to Watch

The game starts at 6:30 P.M. Pacific Time. In the second round, local broadcasts of the game no longer continue. As such, it can only be viewed on national channels. Game 1 can be viewed on ESPN.

Be sure to check in with The Hockey Writers for Round 2 coverage!