Ducks Golden – Anaheim secured a 4-3 win at the Honda Center to tie the series 2-2 against Vegas, as Joel Quenneville called it a “man’s game.”
A ferocious. physical Game 4 at the Honda Center flipped the momentum back to the Anaheim Ducks. and Joel Quenneville wasted no time describing it as a “man’s game.” Playing in front of their home crowd on Sunday night. the Ducks delivered the win they needed to stay alive in their Western Conference second-round series with the Vegas Golden Knights.
Anaheim struck first with a 1-0 lead in the opening period and never surrendered it. building on that foundation to earn a 4-3 victory.. The result was pivotal: the Ducks tied the series 2-2 as they headed back to Las Vegas. ensuring they would not have to face a potentially difficult 3-1 deficit on the road.
Quenneville highlighted the intensity of the contest after the final buzzer. pointing to the effort and the way his team battled for control in key stretches.. The head coach’s remarks came after a game that saw the Ducks and Golden Knights combine for 61 hits. underlining how much the matchup relied on speed. timing. and determination in contested areas.
The storyline for Anaheim quickly shifted to its younger players, who helped set the tone offensively. Beckett Sennecke scored and also added an assist, while Cutter Gauthier—fresh off a regular season that included 41 goals—registered three assists in Game 4.
Gauthier also explained what changed for him from the earlier games. saying that in the first three contests he didn’t receive enough shots.. On Sunday. he emphasized getting into the right spaces. getting in front of opponents and the goalie. and creating disruption—an approach that aligned with his production and with the Ducks’ overall intensity.
Sennecke provided the opening moment that mattered, scoring in the first period. Vegas responded through Pavel Dorofeyev, who evened things up on a power play midway through the frame, turning the game into a back-and-forth fight before Anaheim found its next answer.
Mikael Granlund reclaimed the Ducks’ edge with five minutes remaining in the first period, restoring a 2-1 lead heading into the middle stages. From there, scoring continued in bursts, with the teams trading goals in the second period as the contest tightened.
Brett Howden tied the game during the middle frame, but Anaheim immediately turned the momentum back with a man-advantage score. Alex Killorn put the Ducks ahead 3-2 late in the second period, and the play featured a key setup from Sennecke and Gauthier.
The game’s decisive swing arrived in the third period when defenseman Ian Moore scored the eventual winner early in regulation—his first goal of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs.. For Anaheim. that goal didn’t just extend the lead; it also provided a cushion that made Vegas’s late push harder to translate into full control.
Tomas Hertl made it interesting late in regulation by pulling Vegas closer, but the Golden Knights could not complete the comeback. When time ran out, Anaheim’s 4-3 advantage held, leaving Vegas with no margin for error and Ducks fans with home-ice life renewed.
The Ducks’ victory carried added pressure because it prevented a scenario that would have been difficult to manage from a distance. With their series position on the line, Anaheim “could not have afforded” to head to Las Vegas trailing 3-1, and Game 4 delivered the must-have outcome.
With the tie now at 2-2, Anaheim is guaranteed another home game at the Honda Center. That also gives the Ducks a chance to swing home-ice advantage back in their favor in Game 5, with the pressure now shifting to both teams to define what kind of series this will become.
Puck is set to drop for Game 5 just past 9:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, as the Ducks look to build on the physical, momentum-driving performance that carried them to a tied series heading into hostile territory.
Anaheim Ducks Vegas Golden Knights Game 4 Joel Quenneville NHL playoffs Cutter Gauthier Beckett Sennecke