icing call – Vegas scored after a waved-off icing that angered Anaheim, with Ivan Barbashev sealing a 3-1 win as Joel Quenneville vented postgame.
A potential icing call became the flashpoint as the Golden Knights pulled away from the Ducks late, ending Anaheim’s night with a 3-1 loss that left head coach Joel Quenneville visibly furious.
With five minutes remaining in the third. Ivan Barbashev scored to give Vegas a 2-1 lead. turning a chaotic sequence into a decisive advantage.. The turning point came after Anaheim’s Jackson LaCombe appeared to have the edge on the puck. but the linesman waved off icing. allowing the play to continue from deep in Vegas territory.. LaCombe then turned it over to Pavel Dorofeyev. who drove toward the net and set up Barbashev for the go-ahead goal.
For Anaheim, the frustration was immediate and lingering, as the call they believed should have stopped the rush instead became the moment the game swung.
Quenneville didn’t hold back when addressing reporters after the final whistle.. He said he disagreed with the decision and argued it was plainly icing. adding that the officiating crew did not provide him with an explanation during the exchange.. His tone captured the wider sense of momentum being shaped by the offside call. with the Ducks unable to recover once Vegas gained control of the late phase.
In this context, the sequence also highlights how small margins in puck races can carry outsized weight in NHL games, especially when the clock is down to the final minutes of a close contest.
Game officials and rule interpretations matter in these moments.. Under the NHL’s guidance. icing is judged by which player would first touch the puck rather than simply who reaches deeper locations first; if the race is too close to determine by the time a player arrives at the end-zone faceoff dots. icing should be called.
Meanwhile. Vegas made sure to protect the result after Barbashev’s strike. eventually holding on to finish the match with a 3-1 win.. With the series set to continue. the next matchup between the teams is scheduled for Wednesday in Las Vegas. where the Ducks will likely look to restore order and quiet the controversy.
That next game matters because it gives Anaheim a chance to respond directly, while also testing whether Vegas can repeat the sort of high-stakes puck pressure that turned one call into two points.