Marner's first playoff hat trick
propels Golden Knights to 6-2 rout of Ducks and 2-1 series lead
[May 09, 2026]
By GREG BEACHAM
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Mitch Marner had three goals and an assist in
his first career playoff hat trick, and the Vegas Golden Knights
routed the Anaheim Ducks 6-2 on Friday night to take a 2-1 lead in
their second-round series.
Shea Theodore had a goal and an assist and Brayden McNabb scored a
short-handed goal as the Golden Knights stormed to a 5-0 lead after
two periods, silencing a sellout crowd in Orange County and erasing
memories of their rough offensive outing in Game 2.
“Our desperation level definitely got higher,” Marner said. “I just
like the way that we came out and started. The first 10 minutes
really, we just played our game and got to it, and that's something
we were missing the first two games.”
Carter Hart made 30 saves as Vegas moved halfway to the Western
Conference finals while sending the upstart Ducks to the worst loss
of their first postseason in eight years.
Game 4 is Sunday night in Anaheim.
Marner got his natural hat trick in the first two periods, giving
him six goals in the past four games of his first playoff run with
his new team. The longtime Maple Leafs forward delivered Vegas’
first four-point playoff performance since 2019 and prompted a few
hats to be thrown onto the ice when he slipped his third goal under
Ville Husso with 2:04 left in the second.
“I think (Marner) is very confident in what he brings," Vegas coach
John Tortorella said. "People give him (grief) all the time about
playoffs, and this and that, and I don’t think it bothers him a
lick. He just plays. He’s a hockey player, and I’m glad he’s doing
some things for us.”
Marner's three goals were more than he scored in last spring's
entire 13-game playoff run with Toronto, where the Ontario native
frequently got criticism for not delivering in the postseason.
“It's always nice to try to contribute, but at the end of the day,
you just want to win games,” Marner said. “There's been a lot of
different moments so far in this playoffs that people have stepped
up and made big plays. Tonight, (there were) a lot of great plays by
people around me to set me up in a spot where I could succeed.”
Beckett Sennecke and Chris Kreider scored in the third period for
the Ducks, who got embarrassed in their team’s first home game in
the second round since 2017. Kreider's goal was the 50th of his
playoff career.
[to top of second column] |
Anaheim Ducks center Mikael Granlund, left passes the puck while
under pressure from Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Rasmus Andersson
during the first period in Game 3 of a second-round NHL hockey
Stanley Cup playoff series Friday, May 8, 2026, in Anaheim, Calif.
(AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
“I thought they played well, but I don't think we
brought our best,” Ducks forward Alex Killorn said. “Maybe a little
bit comfortable, in all honesty. They're a great team. We just have
to have a little bit of a better start and effort.”
Lukas Dostal gave up three goals on eight shots in a rough first
period before Husso replaced him. Anaheim coach Joel Quenneville
said he wasn't sure whether Dostal would start Game 4.
“They were desperate. They were hungrier,” Quenneville said after
his team’s first home playoff loss of the spring. “I think there’s a
lesson to take out of today’s game, and it’s only going to get
harder every single game. ... They play like they’re an experienced
bunch and they know what is necessary as you progress in a series.
They got our attention.”
Vegas captain Mark Stone didn't play in the third period after
apparently incurring a lower-body injury in the first period.
Tortorella declined to give details.
Theodore, Anaheim's first-round draft pick in 2013, put Vegas ahead
66 seconds after the opening faceoff with his 20th postseason goal.
The 35-year-old McNabb then scored the third short-handed goal of
his 14-year NHL career, and Marner capped the Knights' stellar first
period with his fourth playoff goal on a power play. Marner tapped
in a pass from Theodore midway through the second.
Brett Howden put his sixth playoff goal into an empty net with 1:56
left.
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