Hill likely to start for Golden Knights in Game 7 of Western 1st Round 

LAS VEGAS -- Bruce Cassidy winked after saying he wouldn’t reveal his starting goalie when the Vegas Golden Knights play the Dallas Stars in Game 7 of the Western Conference First Round at American Airlines Center in Dallas on Sunday (7:30 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, MAX, truTV, TBS, BSSW, SN, TVAS), even if all signs point to Adin Hill.

“(Adin’s) been here, he’s shut out Dallas before. Twice, I believe,” the Golden Knights coach said Saturday before departing to Dallas. “How about a [third] time, ‘Hilly’? That’s what we’re looking for. I’m sure they’ll have something to say about that and have a game plan for him.”

Hill was the first goalie to leave the Golden Knights' morning skate Sunday, a strong indication he will start.

Cassidy turned to Hill for Game 5 after Logan Thompson started the first four games of the best-of-7 series. Thompson won the first two, lost the next two and has a 2.35 goals-against average and .921 save percentage.

Hill allowed three goals on 25 shots in a 3-2 loss, then made 23 saves in a 2-0 win in Game 6 at T-Mobile Arena on Friday. He has a 1.52 GAA and .938 save percentage in his two starts.

“It's almost an even split anyway, and I'm not really surprised that they ended up working out this way if the series was going the distance,” Cassidy said. “Logan played more (at the end of the season) and was on his game; Adin was still trying to find it. So, while we know that Adin has the experience of being in there, we're balancing the two of them, and here we are.”

Cassidy wouldn’t have to worry about Hill being fazed by the moment Sunday; the latter had a 2.17 GAA and .932 save percentage in 16 playoff games (14 starts) last season, helping Vegas win the Stanley Cup.

Hill said he never lost confidence despite only playing five games since April 8. Over a 17-game stretch beginning Jan. 23 until he was injured March 23 against the Columbus Blue Jackets, he went 8-8 with a 3.23 GAA and .898 save percentage.

But he never let his struggles get to him.

“I always have confidence in myself,” Hill said after the game Friday. “My game had a little stretch there where I struggled and let some goals in that I should haven’t, but in practice I never really lost it.

“It’s a mental thing more than anything. When I got my number called in Game 5, I just went out and tried to be positive and have a good game. I felt like I played decent that game, though a couple of things I could have cleaned up. I felt like it came together a little better tonight, but it’s a team effort out there.”

Whether it’s Hill or Thompson who starts Game 7, they will be tasked with trying to outperform Stars goalie Jake Oettinger, who has started each of the first six games of the series and is 3-3 with a 2.10 GAA and .921 save percentage.

“You’re not advancing without good goaltending,” Cassidy said. “I think you’ve seen that from both sides. There hasn’t been a poor game from the goaltenders at all, so I think it’s a series where they’re dictating a lot of the outcomes.”