LAS VEGAS (AP) — Pavel Dorofeyev scored his second goal of the game at 4:10 of overtime to give Vegas a 3-2 victory over the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday night, moving the Golden Knights a victory away from advancing to the Western Conference final.
Game 6 of the second-round series is Thursday night at Anaheim.
The Golden Knights can reach the conference final for the first time since winning the Stanley Cup in 2023. Anaheim, making its first playoff appearance in eight years, will try force a Game 7 back in Las Vegas on Saturday.
Tomas Hertl had gone 29 games going back to the regular season without a goal, but now has two in two games. He also had the primary assist on Dorofeyev’s power-play goal in the first period. Jack Eichel had two assists, including the primary one on the winner.
Carter Hart stopped 34 shots.
Ducks defenseman Olen Zellweger scored his first career playoff goal from the left circle to tie it at 2 with 3:05 left in regulation. Beckett Sennecke extended his goals streak to four games with a power-play score. Mason McTavish and Cutter Gauthier each has two assists and Lukas Dostal made 29 saves.
Ducks center Ryan Poehling was helped off the ice after being checked hard into the boards by Vegas defenseman Brayden McNabb nearly midway through the first period. McNabb received a five-minute major for interference and was sent to the dressing room with a game misconduct, costing the Golden Knights a first-pair blue liner.
The Ducks got a goal off the power play when Sennecke scored off a rebound. Dorofeyev answered after taking the puck from Chris Kreider, shifting to the slot and snapping a shot past Dostal.
Hertl's rebound goal at 4:48 of the third period nearly stood up before Zellweger took advantage of extended offensive zone time to force extra play.
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