LAS VEGAS -- It was no secret the Vegas Golden Knights played a lot of hockey over the last few months.
Many of their top players went deep into the Winter Olympics. Combined with the typical grind of the postseason, it was only a matter of time until fatigue began to play a factor. Game Five showed the cracks beginning to form, but the Golden Knights would not give up until a team got that fourth win.
Unfortunately, that fourth win finally came on Sunday, as the Golden Knights’ battery hit empty as they were shut out by the Carolina Hurricanes 3-0 in Game Six.
“We knew that top line was going to play a lot tonight and we knew they were definitely getting pretty tired in that third period because of how we play,” said Hurricanes forward Jackson Blake. “We play a stress game, so it’s hard to play against, I’ve been told. I’m sure they were tired.”
Jackson Blake after the Hurricanes won the Stanley Cup Final: pic.twitter.com/opUgwLUd5A
— Derek Hegna (@DerekHegna) June 15, 2026
The game did not get out to the greatest start for the Golden Knights. Four minutes in, Taylor Hall managed to sneak past every Vegas defender to get a clean breakaway on Carter Hart, beating him on the far side to push the Hurricanes to an early lead.
“It’s a great story,” said Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind’Amour about Hall. “We got a bunch of these guys that grinded it out, and him coming over with the pedigree he had, it could have been easy to say ‘I’m not doing this,” but he was the opposite. He was like ‘How do I contribute to getting [The Stanley Cup]?’”
The rest of the first period was dominated by the goaltending, with Hart making an excellent diving save on Andrei Svechnikov, while Brandon Bussi stopped a one-timer from Pavel Dorofeyev with seconds remaining.
After the goaltenders continued to impress in the second period, the second line for the Hurricanes continued to make plays. Beating the Golden Knights on the forecheck, Logan Stankoven found Blake for a one-time shot that beat Hart up high to double the Carolina lead.
“I just think it’s how we connected and everyone was buying in on our line,” said Blake. “We were playing together. Those two were so good all playoffs long. The fact that we could do what we did tonight in a game like that and how big of a game it is, it’s really special.”
Bussi would effectively lock the Golden Knights down in third period, and Nikolaj Ehlers would finish the job with an empty net goal to secure the shutout and give the Hurricanes their first Stanley Cup since 2006.
“I thought their goaltender was really good tonight,” admitted Golden Knights head coach John Tortorella about Bussi. “Since he came in, he’s been very good. It’s a good hockey team, it’s a well-coached team. It’s a team that checks, and their goalie gives them a really good opportunity in the second part of this series.”
The Conn Smythe Award would go to Hurricanes forward Jordan Staal, who dominated the Golden Knights with six goals, all of which were in the first five games.
With the season officially over, the attention now shifts to the draft and free agency, with the decisions of players like Dorofeyev and Rasmus Andersson looming large over the foreseeable future.
“I know we’re on the wrong end of it here, but I feel that’s a strong room,” said Tortorella to close out his postgame press conference. “I’m anxious to see what happens next year because it has another chance.”