The Ducks felt good about their play in Game 1, despite failing to take a 1-0 series lead. The Golden Knights, despite winning the game, felt that they did not play as well as the Ducks.
"I think we kind of dictated the game for most of it," Ducks forward Beckett Sennecke said. "Especially the first period. We came out a lot better than they did."
"I thought across the board, we had everyone contributing and we had the energy we were looking for and speed and pace" Ducks head coach Joel Quenneville said. "We had some good opportunities, we missed some great chances as well."
While it may be concerning that Vegas was able to win a game where they felt like they weren't at their best, the Ducks believe that they were right in it until the end, just like Game 1 against the Edmonton Oilers.
"It's little things, breakdowns," Sennecke said. "That unfortunate call that we thought should have been icing. But it's more of the same."
"I thought we played a good game," Ducks forward Cutter Gauthier said. There's a couple mistakes we need to clean up. Not playing this team in a little bit here, we knew what to expect, but we didn't really know what to expect going into it. It's a good challenge. They've got a great team and it's going to be fun to compete against them again tonight."
May 4, 2026; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Carter Hart (79) defends his net as a deflection by Anaheim Ducks center Leo Carlsson (91) lifts over the cross bar during the first period of game one of the second round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images"I think that's what playoffs is," Ducks forward Ryan Poehling said. "Maybe a little cat and mouse where maybe they didn't play their best (in Game 1) and stole one from us. But, from our standpoint, you just know that they're going to come out harder. They're going to make adjustments, they're going to be tougher on us, try to slow us down."
Anaheim's power play went 0-for-4 in Game 1, but Quenneville said he liked the looks they got, also noting that they won't be able to score on the power play every single game.
"They did a good job against us," Quenneville said. "They've got great sticks. The time and space is a lot tighter. We had a couple looks, but at the same time, we had one of those special series in the last one where we don't expect to be scoring at that rate. But I still thought there was enough momentum in our power play opportunities, our possession and zone time that the power play was still effective in what they had to do. It's just a matter, now, of trying to find a goal to get it going."
"Edmonton kind of lets you hang onto it a little bit more," Sennecke said of the opposing penalty kill setup. "Vegas comes with a lot of pressure, so that's just kind of having a good middle release. That's kind of something we went over yesterday and this morning. Winning the draw is a huge part of the power play, I think we went 0-for-5."
Troy Terry will play in Game 2 despite missing the morning skate due to maintenance, which has been the norm for the past month or so. Radko Gudas, who has been out with a lower-body injury since Game 1 of the Oilers series, participated in morning skate for the second consecutive gameday, but will not play in Game 2.
Ducks Projected Lines
Chris Kreider - Leo Carlsson - Troy Terry
Alex Killorn - Mikael Granlund - Beckett Sennecke
Mason McTavish - Ryan Poehling - Cutter Gauthier
Jeff Viel - Tim Washe - Ian Moore
Jackson LaCombe - Jacob Trouba
Pavel Mintyukov - John Carlson
Tyson Hinds - Drew Helleson
Lukáš Dostál (confirmed)
Golden Knights Projected Lines
Ivan Barbashev - Jack Eichel - Pavel Dorofeyev
Brett Howden - Mitch Marner - Mark Stone
Tomáš Hertl - William Karlsson - Keegan Kolesar
Cole Smith - Nic Dowd - Colton Sissons
Brayden McNabb - Shea Theodore
Noah Hanifin - Rasmus Andersson
Ben Hutton - Kaedan Korczak
Carter Hart (confirmed)
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