The Anaheim Ducks have been gliding through uncharted waters for much of the playoffs.
The Ducks are now in a new pool as they prepare to host the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday for Game 6 of their Western Conference semifinal series.
Anaheim trails 3-2 in the best-of-seven series and must drum up a victory to stave off elimination in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
“It’s our first time with our backs against the wall, and I’m excited for us to show everybody what we’ve got,” forward Mason McTavish said. “I expect a lot of confidence.”
The Ducks had the momentum thanks to an impressive Game 4 victory, but – after a late game-tying tally – lost the pivotal swing match 3-2 in overtime on Tuesday.
Now the young team must find the form to push the series the distance.
Certainly the Ducks have every reason to be confident. They have been every bit as good as the veteran-laden Golden Knights in what has been a closely contested series.
Last time out, Anaheim opened the scoring for the second consecutive clash, and after falling behind early in the third period, pulled even on Olen Zellweger’s first career playoff goal.
“Our guys are going to be excited about it. It’s a fun opportunity. We got no pressure,” coach Joel Quenneville said. “We’ve got to come out and play hard and simple at home, get excited about the home crowd, and it’s one game to get back and to play one more. So that’s our mindset.”
Quenneville said forward Ryan Poehling, who left the game midway through the first period due to an upper-body injury after a late hit from Vegas defenseman Brayden McNabb, would miss Game 6 and maybe more. He would not divulge what roster moves he planned.
McNabb, who was assessed a major penalty and game misconduct for interference, received a one-game suspension.
The Golden Knights are looking to reach the Western Conference finals for the fifth time in nine seasons since joining the NHL as an expansion team in 2017-18.
Much of that experience was on display in the victory that has Vegas on the verge of advancing, notably finding a way to win after watching a late lead evaporate.
“We’re an older team, and it’s that feeling that no moment is too big,” defenseman Rasmus Andersson said. “We’re very confident when we go to overtime. I think we keep our composure and just try to simplify stuff honestly.”
It helps when a team has a player as hot as overtime hero Pavel Dorofeyev, who netted his first career playoff winner off a rebound chance. With the goal at 4:10 of overtime, Dorofeyev has scored three times in the past two games and has tallied seven times in this year’s playoff run.
“To be honest with you, I can’t even tell you what happened there,” he said. “I just saw the puck, just got my stick on it and thankfully got it.”
Adding to the success is the resurgence of Tomas Hertl, a huge boost with captain Mark Stone out of action due to injury. Hertl scored once and added an assist in Game 5, giving him goals in consecutive games after snapping a 29-game goal-scoring drought in Game 4.
“In the playoffs, only what matters is winning the games, and it doesn’t matter who scores, but you just try to stay with it,” Hertl said. ” … Hopefully, this is behind me, and this stretch should never happen again, because it was way too long.”
