The Ducks’ second-round playoff showdown with the Vegas Golden Knights has become a best-of-three series.
With a 4-3 victory Sunday before a raucous sold-out crowd at Honda Center, the Ducks evened the series 2-2 ahead of Game 5 in Las Vegas on Tuesday. But it wasn’t easy, with the Golden Knights twice rallying from deficits, only to see the Ducks answer each time.
Success on the power play was a key factor behind the Ducks’ Game 4 win. So lethal in the team’s first-round win over Edmonton and so ineffective in the first three games of this series, the power play finally clicked, with Beckett Sennecke and Alex Killorn scoring on the man-advantage.
“A lot of times you could move the puck around too much, and you kind of look for the perfect opportunity on the power play. For us, it’s just about getting more chances and more shots on net,” Killorn said. “Typically on a power play, the more times you shoot it, a lot happens off rebounds or a puck will go in the corner and you can create plays off of that. So it’s not about getting the perfect play.
“I think we just did a better job getting pucks to the nets.”
The Ducks’ other goals came from Mikael Granlund and Ian Moore. Pavel Dorofeyev, Brett Howden and Tomas Hertl scored for Vegas.
The Ducks were fast and physical early, playing with an urgency they lacked in their Game 3 loss. They also did a better job protecting the puck and that paid off with the team’s first power-play goal of the series 8:43 into the first period.
Vegas had killed 11 penalties against the Ducks and 21 in a row dating back to Game 3 of their first-round series against Utah. But after Dylan Coghlan went off for interference, Sennecke teed up a shot from the top of the right circle for his fourth goal of the playoffs, putting the Ducks up 1-0.
“I think there was a lot more urgency tonight,” said Killorn, who has played in 150 career playoff games, the most of any Ducks player. “It’s kind of the way the playoffs go. You don’t ever want to lose two in a row at home. You don’t want to go down 3-1 in a series. So it’s a huge win.
The lead didn’t last long, however, with Dorofeyev evening things on the power play about a minute and half later. The goal, on a tip-in, was Dorofeyev’s fifth of the postseason.
Ducks defenseman Ian Moore celebrates with teammates after scoring in the third period of a 4-3 win over the Golden Knights in Game 4 on Sunday at Honda Center.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Granlund put the Ducks back on top less than five minutes before the first intermission, taking a pass from Jeffrey Viel along the boards and getting off a shot as he battled Vegas forward Cole Smith. The puck appeared to strike the blade of Smith’s stick as Viel let it go and that proved fortunate for the Ducks since the deflection fooled defenseman Noah Hanifin and goalie Carter Hart, who both let the bouncing puck tumble through them and into the goal.
That lead didn’t last long, either, with Howden tying things again for Vegas 4:04 into the second. The goal, on the Golden Knights’ ninth shot, was Howden’s seventh of the playoffs, giving him a share of the NHL lead. Mitch Marner assisted on the first two Vegas goals, giving him a league-leading 15 points in 10 postseason games.
Killorn, however, scored the Ducks’ second power-play goal less than two minutes before the second intermission, putting the Ducks in front to stay.
“Once you score one, it kind of changes the confidence of a power play,” Killorn said. “You’re getting good opportunities, you’re getting good chances [but] it’s not going your way. To see one go in, for us it was kind of a momentum-builder, and it gives you confidence.”
Moore, playing for just the second time in the series, doubled the lead 3:43 into the third period, lining in a slap shot from well above the right circle. That goal proved to be decisive when Hertl scored with 64 seconds to play after Vegas pulled their goalie for an extra attacker.
Both teams split their two games at home. The Golden Knights will have the home-ice advantage — if there is one — over the last three games since two are scheduled in Las Vegas.
Sunday’s win marked the sixth consecutive time the Ducks evened a playoff series it trailed 2-1 after three games.
“I think we got momentum,” Ducks coach Joel Quenneville said. “Things are going good for as long as you keep it, that’s rather better than chasing it. But at the same time, both teams played hard.
“I thought we did a lot of good things.”
Vegas played without winger Mark Stone, whose 28 goals were second-most on the team during the regular season. Stone, who had a goal and an assist in the first three games against the Ducks, is the team’s all-time playoff scoring leader with 79 points (39 goals, 40 assists) in 94 games. He sustained an undisclosed injury in the first period of Game 3 and his status for the rest of the series is unclear.
