Anaheim Ducks face elimination against Vegas Golden Knights in Game 6 of NHL semis

The Anaheim Ducks host the Vegas Golden Knights Thursday night at 9:30 p.m. ET in Game 6 of the Western Conference semifinal series. The Ducks face elimination for the first time this postseason after Vegas took a 3-2 series lead with a 3-2 overtime win in Game 5 on Tuesday in Las Vegas ^{[1, 2]}.

Vegas' Pavel Dorofeyev scored the game-winning overtime goal, marking his seventh goal of the playoffs to lead the Golden Knights ^{[1, 2]}. Jack Eichel leads the NHL with 14 assists this postseason and can become the first player in franchise history with three straight multi-assist playoff games tonight ^{[1, 2]}.

Vegas won their third consecutive overtime game in Game 5, tying the longest such streak in team history. They hold a 5-0 franchise record when winning Game 5 of a tied 2-2 series and have closed out every series in Game 6 under those conditions, holding an all-time 6-3 record in Game 6 while leading 3-2 ^{[1, 2]}. The Golden Knights played without captain Mark Stone in Game 5 due to an undisclosed injury ^{[1, 2]}.

The Ducks finished the regular season 43-33-6, placing third in the Pacific Division. They reached the playoffs for the first time since 2017-18 after upsetting the Edmonton Oilers in six games in the opening round ^[3]. Joel Quenneville has been credited with transforming the Ducks into contenders in about one year ^[3]. Lukas Dostal is expected to start in goal for Anaheim in Game 6. He posted a 3.10 goals-against average and .888 save percentage in the regular season ^[3].

Vegas led the Pacific Division with a 39-26-17 record and have made the postseason all but one year since their 2017 inception, including winning a Stanley Cup ^[3]. Carter Hart has started all Vegas playoff games, allowing 27 goals on 310 shots with a save percentage near 91% ^[3].

NHL teams that win Game 5 of a tied 2-2 series go on to win the series about 82% of the time, emphasizing the stakes for tonight's game ^[3]. The winner will face the Colorado Avalanche in the next round ^{[1, 2]}. If necessary, a Game 7 will be played Saturday in Las Vegas at 9:30 p.m. ET ^{[1, 2]}.