The Anaheim Ducks will host the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs’ second round at Honda Center on May 14. The Ducks trail the series 3-2 and face elimination if they do not win tonight. Puck drop is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Pacific Time, with national coverage on TNT.
This game follows a narrow overtime loss to Vegas, where Mason McTavish and Cutter Gauthier each contributed two assists, and Olen Zellweger scored late in regulation to force overtime. Head coach Joel Quenneville praised Zellweger’s perseverance after missing the first nine playoff games as a healthy scratch. “He bided his time, he worked his tail off getting himself not just conditionally ready for it, but mentally,” Quenneville said of Zellweger. “That was the thing that we were all appreciative of, how he approached it and prepared himself to be a part of it and contribute in a meaningful way. And he did more than we were expecting.”
Quenneville also confirmed that Ryan Poehling will miss tonight’s game due to an upper-body injury sustained from a hit by Brayden McNabb during Game 5. As a result of this incident, McNabb received a one-game suspension and will not play tonight.
Despite Tuesday’s defeat, the Ducks are focused on confronting their situation directly rather than making significant changes ahead of this elimination game. Quenneville said now is not the time for major adjustments since “one bounce went to [Vegas]” last game.
Center Tim Washe addressed the team’s mindset going into Game 6: “We’re excited for the opportunity here, backs against the wall,” Washe said. “We’re gonna scratch and claw and do everything we can to get the job done tonight in front of our fans. It’s a huge opportunity for our group, and we’re excited for the challenge.” John Carlson added: “It’s a new day,” Carlson said. “We have to attack what’s ahead of us and I think we all feel confident that we can win two games.” He continued: “We’ve never thrown in the towel once this whole year and I think we’ve shown that resiliency in our game, in our series. I think that’s what you draw from and have that positivity going into a big game on home ice, and that will present some great things for us.”
McTavish shared his anticipation about playing under pressure: “I’m pretty excited to see what we all got,” McTavish said. “I know it’s our first time with our backs against the wall, and I’m excited for us to kind of show everybody what we got. I expect a lot of confidence, and it’ll be a great game Thursday. I think everybody’s pretty excited in here to show them what we’ve got.”
The outcome tonight will determine whether Anaheim forces Game 7 or concludes its playoff run.
