Golden Knights' late comeback not enough to overcome Ducks in 4-3 loss

ANAHEIM, Calif. - The Vegas Golden Knights were looking to end their SoCal road trip on a high note Sunday against the Anaheim Ducks, but despite a comeback effort late in the game, the Golden Knights will have to go home disappointed after a 4-3 loss.

Anaheim got on top of Vegas early after Chris Kreider scored 16th goal of the season off of a pass from Ryan Poehling that Kreider just poked past the unaware Adin Hill guarding the Golden Knights net. 

Kreider followed that up in the second period with his 17th goal of the season to improve the Ducks to 2-0 and it looked like the Golden Knights weren’t going to have an answer for the offensive intensity that the young Anaheim squad was bringing to the ice.

Vegas has struggled against Anaheim this season and after Sunday's loss the Golden Knight's have now been swept by the Ducks in the season series for the first time in franchise history. This season is the first that any team has had to face the fully realized Anaheim squad post their rebuilding period, but Vegas has had rougher results than most.

“They’ve, like some other teams in the league… They’ve done a good job with the rebuild, retool, they’re using different names. They’ve taken steps and that’s what I see," Vegas head coach Bruce Cassidy said. 

Jon Bryan - The Sporting Tribune

The Anaheim Ducks center Mason McTavish (23) fights for the puck against The Las Vegas Golden Knights February 1st, 2026 in Anaheim California.

Falling behind after a power play

An Anaheim power play caused by a two-minute penalty from Tomas Hertl four-and-a-half minutes into the second period put Vegas in the hole 3-0, and it was the failure of the penalty kill that Cassidy was most upset with. 

“They got a power play goal that, in hindsight, that one hurt us. It should have never went in the net,” Cassidy said. 

However, Vegas wasn't done yet. Mitch Marner snapped in the Golden Knight's off a pass from Mark Stone from behind the Anaheim net, turning Ducks goaltender Lukas Dostal around in the process and opening a window for Marner to score. 

The Vegas comeback attempt

That goal began to swing the momentum toward the Golden Knight's side and now they were the ones applying the pressure. The Golden Knights ultimately finished the game with 312 shots on goal to Anaheim's 23, even if not enough went in to turn the tide.

Ivan Barbashev put the Golden Knights within one midway through the third quarter after he tapped in a puck that Dostal had lost sight of under his feet and now all of a sudden, the Golden Knights were on the hunt while the Ducks were in survival mode. 

Jon Bryan - The Sporting Tribune

The Anaheim Ducks Goalie Lukas Dostal (1) shows a goal save against The Las Vegas Golden Knights February 1st, 2026 in Anaheim California.

Vegas' decision to empty the net in the final minutes in an attempt to score the tying goal proved fatal when Ryan Poehling scored the empty net insurance goal that the Ducks desperately needed after Mertl scored the Golden Knight's third goal of the game just a minute later.

It was too little, too late though, and the Golden Knights had to go home with a 4-3 loss. 

They put up a valiant effort to overcome their 3-0 deficit early in the game and according to Cassidy their tendency to fall behind early has meant that Vegas has an unfortunate adaptation to coming back late in games. Although, he'd still rather they didn't fall behind at all.

“Been there before, chasing the game. So, that part, we’re not necessarily comfortable with, but we’ve been through it,” Cassidy said. “We pushed hard until the end, just a little bit short at the end, that’s it.”