Ducks Win Season Opener Against Golden Knights

Photo: AP

By Michael Walters

The Anaheim Ducks traveled to Las Vegas to face the Golden Knights for the first game of the season. Lukas Dostal was in net against Carter Hart. Judd Caulfield and Noah Warren both made their NHL debuts.

Recap

The Ducks scored first in the final seconds of the opening period. Leo Carlsson found Beckett Sennecke in the neutral zone and sprung him on a breakaway. He beat Hart over the shoulder to make it a 1-0 Anaheim at the end of the first period.

Anaheim scored twice early in the second period to make it a 3-0 lead. First, Noah Warren took a point shot through traffic that beat Hart. Alex Killorn ended up redirecting it giving him credit for the goal.

Anaheim scored about a minute later to make it 3-0. Tim Washe deflected a point shot and the puck hit Jeff Malott’s skate and then redirected low past Hart.

About five minutes later Carlsson scored to make it a 4-0 contest. Hart stopped a shot by A.J. Greer, but then was out of position and Carlsson got to the rebound for an easy score into a wide open net. The Ducks maintained the four goal lead after two periods.

Vegas got on the board in the opening minutes of the third period. Shea Theodore beat Dostal from the right face-off circle. Anaheim decided to challenge as it appeared the play might have been offside, but the review upheld the goal.

Anaheim was penalized for delay of game as a result and Vegas scored on the ensuing power play. Tomas Hertl scored in close off the post to make it a 4-2 contest.

Braeden Bowman scored with just under three minutes to go to make it a one goal game. He got to a loose puck in front the Anaheim net and beat Dostal.

Vegas pulled their goalie and tried to get the tying goal, but Anaheim was able to hang on and win 4-3.

Analysis:

The beginning of this contest had the feeling of a heavy weight title fight with both teams feeling each other. The Ducks were able to strike first in the dying seconds of the opening period. Anaheim then dominated the middle frame to build a commanding 4-0 lead. Vegas didn’t give up, however, fighting back in the third period to pull within one and nearly tied the game in the final minutes.

A key moment in this contest came when Vegas scored their first goal in the third period. There was some question as to whether the play was offside, but the replays shown didn’t seem provide enough to overturn the play. The Ducks decided to challenge, but it cost them a penalty and the Golden Knights scored again. The result gave Vegas more life and resulted in the nail biting finish for Anaheim.

Overall, Anaheim played well for 40 minutes of this contest and then terrible in the final 20 minutes. The Ducks had 31 shot attempts through two periods to 34 for Vegas at even strength. In the third period, the Golden Knights put up 27 shot attempts, whereas the Ducks had just 11. The Ducks posted a CF% of 40.78% and FF% of 40.58% for the entire game at even strength and the Golden Knights posted a 59.22% and 59.42% respectively. The defensive pairing of Tyson Hinds and Noah Warren were exposed at times. They both logged just over 9 minutes as they were used sparingly in the third period.

Special teams favored Vegas in this contest. They scored on one power play in three attempts. The Ducks had two power plays of their own, but couldn’t convert.

The Ducks entered the season with several question marks being a super young team and also due to all the personnel they lost in the offseason. They had a solid showing through two periods of play and will need to work on playing a complete game, but they are going to be entertaining to watch with a high pace style of hockey.

Team Notes/Stats:

Warren earned his first NHL point on Anaheim’s second goal.

Malott scored his first goal as an Anaheim Duck.

Carlsson led the team with a goal and an assist.

Luneau logged the second most ice team with just under 27 minutes. During 5-on-5 play he was on ice for three of Anaheim four goals. Vegas did not score on him during 5-on-5 play. He also recorded an assist and had a +3 on ice rating.

What’s Next?

Anaheim hosts the Florida Panthers Sunday at 5 PM for their home opener.

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October 3rd, 2026