The Vegas Golden Knights can advance to the third round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the third time in their four seasons with a win in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Second Round at T-Mobile Arena on Thursday.
The Golden Knights reached the Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural season of 2017-18 and the Western Conference Final last season. If they advance to the NHL Semifinals this season, they will become the third team in NHL history to go that far three times in the team's first four seasons.
The New York Rangers did it in each of their first four seasons, from 1926-30, when the NHL had 10 teams. The St. Louis Blues did it in each of their first three seasons, from 1967-70, when the League expanded from six teams to 12 and the format guaranteed an expansion team would make the Cup Final.
Vegas has won three games in a row, including Games 3 and 4 at home.
"I think guys are smart enough to understand the opportunity that's in front of us here, and you've got to embrace that and just go and play a great hockey game," Golden Knights coach Peter DeBoer said. "I think we're going to have the fans behind us. We're at home. Where else would you want to be?"
Colorado has not lost four in a row at any point this season.
"We're excited about the opportunity to win in this building," Avalanche defenseman Devon Toews said. "We were here for two games before and couldn't get the job done in either of those games, so it's a good opportunity for our group to show up. We feel like we're trending in the right direction. We haven't played our best yet either, so we're ready for that."
The Golden Knights have lost Game 6 three out of four times they have led a best-of-7 series 3-2, including in the first round against the Minnesota Wild. But they have gone on to lose Game 7 once, against the San Jose Sharks in the Western Conference First Round in 2019.
The Avalanche have won Game 6 when trailing a best-of-7 series 3-2 in the second round each of the past two seasons, against the Sharks in 2019 and the Dallas Stars last season. But each time they lost Game 7.
Here are 3 Keys for Game 6: