3 Things to Watch: Golden Knights at Ducks, Game 4 of Western 2nd Round

(1P) Vegas Golden Knights at (3P) Anaheim Ducks

Western Conference Second Round, Game 4

Vegas leads best-of-7 series 2-1

9:30 p.m. ET; ESPN, SN360, SN, TVAS

ANAHEIM -- The Vegas Golden Knights will try to win their fourth straight road playoff game and take a commanding lead in the Western Conference Second Round at Honda Center on Sunday.

The Golden Knights won the final two road games of their first-round series against the Utah Mammoth, including the series-winning Game 6, and took Game 3 here on Friday, 6-2.

In those three games, they have outscored their opponents 16-7, including 11-3 in the past two games. 

They will have to do it without captain Mark Stone, who is out for Game 4 with an undisclosed injury that caused him to miss the second and third periods of Game 3. 

Without Stone in the lineup this season, the Golden Knights were 8-9-5 as opposed to 31-17-12 with him. 

Replacing him will be forward Brandon Saad, who hasn't played since a regular-season game at the Colorado Avalanche on April 11. 

"Both him and (Reilly Smith), either one is not a bad choice," Vegas coach John Tortorella said. "I thought they have both given us good minutes, 'Saader' gets the call tonight." 

The Ducks, who were 3-0 at home before the Game 3 loss on Friday, will still be without defenseman Radko Gudas, who has missed the past seven games with a lower-body injury. 

Forward Mason McTavish, a healthy scratch the past two games, will come back to hopefully help a Ducks power play that is 0-for-11 in the series. He had six power-play goals and 11 power-play points in the regular season.

"He's got a great shot, great vision," Gudas said of McTavish. "I think he's going to be a big factor for us. We need him to be humming for us to be successful."

Teams that take a 3-1 lead in a best-of-7 series win the series 90 percent of the time (247 of 275). 
When that Game 4, win comes on the road, the team wins 92 percent of the series (151 of 165).

Here are three things to watch in Game 4: 

1. Dostal bounce back

Lukas Dostal, who was pulled in Game 3 after allowing three goals in the first period, will be back in net for Anaheim. He was also pulled in Game 5 of the first round after allowing three goals in the first period against the Edmonton Oilers, but was back in Game 6 to help the Ducks win the series. 

"He's showed this year or in his career that he can turn the page very quickly," Gudas said of Dostal. 
"He's been there for us the whole year. He's been there for us with the (Czechia) National Team in big games and he thrives in these games that are a little more pressure. So, I'm looking forward to seeing him play again."

2. Mitch-a-palooza

Mitch Marner has gone streaking, with five goals in his past two road games, and 10 points (six goals, four assists) in his past five games. He has 13 points in nine postseason games, matching his total from 13 games last season with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Marner and his linemates Brett Howden, and William Karlsson, who returned to the lineup for Game 1 after being out since Nov. 8, have combined for 10 points (six goals, four assists) in the first three games against Anaheim. 

"I always try to be that energizer guy, a guy that goes out and brings a lot of passion and energy to games," Marner said. "And I always want the puck on my tape. I want to try to make plays."

3. Captains' logs

Like Gudas, the captain of the Ducks, Vegas' captain, Stone, will also be out with an undisclosed injury. 

Stone played 4:24 of ice time in the first period of Game 3, but didn't play the rest of the game. He will be replaced by Saad, who will be on a line with Tomas Hertl and Keegan Kolesar.

Forward Nic Dowd, who was traded to the Golden Knights from the Washington Capitals on March 5, said Stone leaves a "big void to fill."

"'Stoney' is obviously a huge piece of this team," Dowd said. "I, coming in late in the season, Stoney was out and I think he makes a big difference. But we have guys that can step up and toe the line. 
Obviously he's around, and he's going to be there for us, but I think we have plenty of guys in this group that can step up and although it's a big void to fill, I think we can do it as a group."

Golden Knights projected lineup

Ivan Barbashev -- Jack Eichel -- Pavel Dorofeyev

Brett Howden -- William Karlsson -- Mitch Marner

Brandon Saad -- Tomas Hertl -- Keegan Kolesar

Cole Smith -- Nic Dowd -- Colton Sissons

Brayden McNabb -- Shea Theodore

Noah Hanifin -- Rasmus Andersson

Ben Hutton -- Dylan Coghlan

Carter Hart

Adin Hill

Scratched: Akira Schmid, Reilly Smith, Kaedan Korczak

Injured: Jonas Rondbjerg (lower body), Jeremy Lauzon (upper body), Mark Stone (lower body)

Ducks projected lineup

Chris Kreider -- Leo Carlsson -- Troy Terry

Alex Killorn -- Mikael Granlund -- Beckett Sennecke

Mason McTavish -- Ryan Poehling -- Cutter Gauthier

Ross Johnston -- Tim Washe -- Jeffrey Viel

Jackson LaCombe -- Jacob Trouba

Pavel Mintyukov -- John Carlson

Olen Zellweger -- Ian Moore 

Lukas Dostal

Ville Husso

Scratched: Frank Vatrano, Tyson Hinds, Jansen Harkins

Injured: Drew Helleson (undisclosed), Radko Gudas (lower body)

Status report 

Stone, a forward, will not play after he was injured in the first period of a 6-2 win in Game 3 on Friday. Dorofeyev took Stone's spot on the top line at the morning skate. ... Saad will make his debut in the 2026 playoffs and play his first NHL game since April 11. ... Dostal will start after allowing three goals on nine shots in the first period of Game 3 and being replaced by Husso. … McTavish will play after being a healthy scratch the past two games. ... Harkins, a forward, is a healthy scratch after playing the past two games and scoring an empty-net goal in a 3-1 win in Game 2. ... Helleson, a defenseman, is day to day.