Anaheim won because Dostal conceded 1.2 goals below league average while VGK's 0-for-4 power play left four chances to shift the game unconverted.
β‘TURNING POINT
Stone's power-play goal at 19:54 of the third arrived with Anaheim already leading 3-1 and fewer than six seconds remaining β a cosmetic conversion that confirmed the game was over rather than reopening it. The algorithm flags it because it represents VGK's only power-play conversion in four attempts, arriving too late to matter, crystallising the gap between what Vegas's special teams needed to do and what they actually delivered.
πWHY ANA WON (ranked by impact β most decisive first)
1
Goaltending: Dostal conceded 1.2 goals below league average on 22 shots β in a 3-1 game, that margin directly negated Vegas's territorial advantages and kept every ANA lead intact.
2
Even-strength finish: All three Anaheim goals came at 5v5, spread across three different scorers β Sennecke, Carlsson, and Harkins β denying VGK any single defensive adjustment to neutralise the threat.
3
Shot volume: ANA out-shot VGK 28-22, generating a 6-shot differential that sustained offensive pressure throughout and forced Hart into 27 saves.
πWHY VGK LOST (ranked by impact β biggest failure first)
1
Power play: VGK converted 1/4 (25.0%), but the lone goal came at 19:54 of the third with the game decided β three empty power-play opportunities failed to produce while the game was live.
2
Faceoff dominance without consequence: VGK won 63.2% of faceoffs (36 of 57) but generated only 22 shots, failing to convert puck-possession starts into sustained offensive zone time.
3
Goaltending: Hart conceded 0.7 goals below league average on 28 shots β in a 3-goal game, that margin was insufficient to cover the team's even-strength defensive breakdowns.
Three Stars
Leo Carlsson1st
ANA, C
1G4 shots on goalTOI 21:03+1
Carlsson's 4-shot game was the highest individual shot total on either team, and his third-period goal extended the lead to 2-0 on the night, eliminating VGK's margin for error.
Lukas Dostal2nd
ANA, G
SV% 0.95521 saves60:00 TOI
Dostal conceded 1.2 goals below league average, providing Anaheim a structural edge that held through three periods in a hostile building.
Mark Stone3rd
VGK, R
1G1 SOGTOI 17:354 hits
Stone's power-play goal was Vegas's only conversion and accounted for their lone point on the scoreboard, but his -1 rating reflects the team's broader defensive failure at even strength.
