Ducks struggle on power play, are stymied by Carter Hart in Game 1 loss to Vegas
The Ducks fail to capitalize on their speed advantage and give up a late goal to Ivan Barbashev to lose 3-1 in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals.
Vegas forward Brett Howden scores past Ducks goaltender Lukas Dostal in the second period of the Ducks' 3-1 loss in the Western Conference semifinals on Monday night. (Ethan Miller / Getty Images) T-Mobile Arena sits just off the Las Vegas Strip, not far from a faux Manhattan skyline, a pyramid and a casino made to look like a castle. The line separating illusion from reality can be a thin one in Sin City, where the Ducks opened the second round of the playoffs Monday intent on proving their first-round victory over the Edmonton Oilers was more than a facade.
It didn’t go well, with Brett Howden’s goal early in the second period and Ivan Barbashev’s tiebreaking tally late in the third period giving the Vegas Golden Knights a 3-1 victory in the best-of-seven series. Mitch Marner added an empty-net goal with six seconds to play to end any hope of a Ducks comeback. Mikael Granlund scored for the Ducks with six minutes left in the game.
Game 2 is in Las Vegas on Wednesday. Read more: Ducks surge past Oilers in Game 6 to advance to second round of playoffs The Ducks were a shadow of the team that eliminated Edmonton. After averaging a playoff-high 4.
33 goals a game, the Ducks were stymied by Vegas goalie Carter Hart, who turned away 33 shots. And after converting eight of 16 power-play opportunities against the Oilers, the Ducks were shut out in four chances against the Golden Knights. Although the Ducks played their best defensive game of the postseason, giving up just 21 shots before the empty-netter, the balanced Knights gave them few good scoring opportunities, especially on the power play.