The Vegas Golden Knights’ remarkable postseason run came to an end in a 3-0 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final Sunday night at T-Mobile Arena.
Vegas was unable to extend its season and force a Game 7 in its third trip to the Stanley Cup in nine years, ultimately losing the series 4-2.
Captain Jordan Staal was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs; he was dominant in the series, scoring six goals and winning nearly 70 percent of his draws. Game 6 was the only game of the series in which he did not score a goal.
There were three changes to the Golden Knights’ lineup, the most notable of which was due to the absence of William Karlsson, who sustained an injury in the second period of Game 5. Reilly Smith returned to the lineup for the first time since the second round, and Kaedan Korczak manned the blue line instead of Dylan Coghlan. The surprise was that Braeden Bowman made his playoff debut, replacing Keegan Kolesar on the fourth line.
What wasn’t a surprise was the fact that John Tortorella went right back to Carter Hart in net despite the fact that Hart became the first goalie in NHL history to surrender four goals in each of the first five games of the Stanley Cup Final.
But Hart is not the reason Vegas lost Game 6, as he yielded just two goals on 22 shots for a .909 save percentage. The goalie at the other end of the rink played a significant role in the Hurricanes’ first Stanley Cup win in 20 years, however, as Brandon Bussi stopped all 22 shots he faced in the clincher.
It was a sloppy first period for the Golden Knights, who turned the puck over, lost battles and blew opportunities.
The Hurricanes took a 1-0 lead when Taylor Hall got behind the defense and beat Hart glove-side. It was a shot Hart absolutely has to stop, though the Golden Knights fell asleep on the play after Brett Howden bobbled the puck inside the offensive blue line. Hall’s seventh of the playoffs gave the Hurricanes the lead just 3:47 into Game 6.
The Golden Knights got the first power play, but Tomas Hertl played the puck with his glove right off the faceoff, which is a penalty. He didn’t exactly play it with his glove, though his glove made contact with the puck, which ended Vegas’ man-advantage early.
Pavel Dorofeyev had a few chances in tight, one of which he knocked out of mid-air, but the puck hit iron and stayed out.
Both goalies made memorable saves in the opening frame, though one of Hart’s was potentially a series-saving one (even if it technically didn’t count). Hart misplayed the puck behind the net but then made a desperation save, diving across the wide-open cage and getting a piece of Andrei Svechnikov’s bid to prevent Carolina from taking a 2-0 lead.
The Golden Knights’ penalty kill let Vegas down in Game 5, but it came up with a particularly clutch effort late in the period. The Golden Knights carried that momentum into their first full power play of the game. Vegas generated six shots but still looked way too hesitant to get pucks to the net.
Even so, they made Bussi work for it, and he was Carolina’s best penalty killer. His most impressive save came in the waning seconds of the period when he made a diving save on Dorofeyev’s one-timer off a feed from Jack Eichel.
Bussi also stopped Howden on a breakaway earlier in the period. In the end, he finished the opening 20 minutes with 11 saves to preserve the Hurricanes’ 1-0 lead going into the first intermission.
The second period was one of Vegas’ worst of the series.
Hart made another crucial stop just under three minutes in, stopping Staal on a breakaway with a pad save.
But the Hurricances slowed the pace down considerably, holding Vegas to three shots, all of which came in the first 4:17. Carolina’s play forced the Golden Knights to ice the puck repeatedly, and Tortorella scrambled the lines on almost every shift but couldn’t find a spark.
Instead, the Hurricanes’ second line — which has been Carolina’s most dangerous throughout the playoffs — struck again, with Logan Stankoven and Jackson Blank methodically outworking Vegas on the forecheck. Eventually, Blake beat Hart on a deflection, doubling Carolina’s lead with 6:29 remaining.
The Golden Knights looked listless. They were outplayed on most shifts, and the Hurricanes took over the game. Tortorella did not elect to call timeout at any point.
In the end, Vegas finished the period without a shot on goal for the final 15:43.
As a result, the Golden Knights entered the third period down by two goals with the season and the Stanley Cup on the line.
But the Golden Knights didn’t look overly desperate for most of the third period. In fact, they had just three shots on goal in the first 15 minutes, and that included a power play.
To be fair, Vegas’ best chance of the game came on that power play. An incredible keep at the blue line by Hertl led to a 2-on-0 for Mark Stone and Eichel. But Eichel hit the crossbar.
Bussi proceeded to look solid in net, calmly turning away a shot by Dorofeyev and keeping Vegas in a two-goal hole.
Tortorella pulled out all the stops, putting Mitch Marner on defense with under five minutes to go. Vegas pulled Hart with just over three minutes left, but Bussi continued to shut down Vegas’ best efforts. Hertl had a glorious chance on a rebound but shot it right into Bussi, who was down in the crease.
With 1:25 remaining, Tortorella called timeout after a series of chances failed to find the back of the net. But 17 seconds later, Nikolaj Ehlers iced the game, the series and the Stanley Cup with an empty-net goal.
The Hurricanes ran out the final 1:08 for the 3-0 win.
The Golden Knights failed to deliver in the most important game of the season.
In the end, Vegas couldn’t buy a goal.
The Golden Knights never really found their rhythm and didn’t play with enough desperation until the 6-on-5. Carolina executed its smothering gameplan, capitalized on Vegas mistakes and took care of the puck in all three zones. Everyone in the Hurricanes’ lineup contributed, and Carolina held Vegas at bay for most of the night.
Most notably, Bussi was sensational. In fact, he finished the game with 3.15 goals saved above expected, according to Money Puck.
He was excellent throughout the series since replacing Frederik Andersen, but he saved his best performance for last.
Despite being on the losing end, the same was true of Hart.
Much has been made of Hart’s play throughout the series, but Game 6 was not on him. He was far from perfect, and he looked shaky on numerous occasions. The worst of it was Hall’s goal, which was beyond soft. However, he stepped up with key saves and kept Vegas in the game all night.
The Golden Knights made mistakes, but they were always one shot away from making this a game.
That’s a problem when shots are so difficult to come by.
The Golden Knights had been excellent in the second period in the first four games of the series, but Vegas fell flat in Game 6, failing to record a shot in the final 15-plus minutes.
Zero shots in 15:43. In an elimination game. In the Stanley Cup Final. At home.
If not for Hart, the deficit could have been steeper.
At a certain point, going more than 18 minutes without a shot (including the start of the third) is simply unacceptable. The same is true of finishing the game with just 10 shots at 5-on-5.
Part of that was due to Carolina’s play, which should be commended.
But while the Golden Knights never threw in the towel, they needed to find another gear. They didn’t.
This series was mismanaged throughout, but the Golden Knights needed to win one period to set up a winner-take-all Game 7. They didn’t.
They were more competitive in every other game, and they bounced back time and time again throughout the playoffs and the Stanley Cup Final. They needed to find a way to do the same in Game 6. They didn’t.
Special teams was the difference in Game 5. Vegas’ penalty kill was much better in Game 6, going 3-for-3, but the Golden Knights failed to take advantage on the power play, including in the third period. The Golden Knights needed to win that battle. They didn’t.
The Golden Knights needed someone — anyone — to make a play. They didn’t.
Many had chances. Howden had a breakaway, Hertl had a prime opportunity late in the game and Dorofeyev had several great looks, recording a game-high six shots on goal. But the top players didn’t get the job done. Stone passed on multiple opportunities to shoot, including early in the third on an odd-man rush. Eichel over-passed on the power play and missed the open net late in the third. Marner finished with a minus-three rating.
Carolina, meanwhile, did all the little things right and looked like the much fresher team, rolling four lines and three pairs throughout the contest.
The Golden Knights continued to push until the very end, it just wasn’t enough.
It was an incredible playoff run, but it was a disappointing finish. Mistakes were made, chances were wasted, and the Golden Knights came up short. They made it to the Final, but they were never aiming for second place.
At the end of the day, the Hurricanes were the better team in Game 6, and the better team was the last team standing.
Photo courtesy of the Golden Knights