LOS ANGELES — Carter Hart was the best player on the ice for Vegas through the first two games of this series, and his play helped the Golden Knights earn a split at T-Mobile Arena. That early edge is part of why the Western Conference second-round matchup between Vegas and the Anaheim Ducks is tied 2-2 heading into Game 5 on Tuesday.
Hart stopped 89 of 94 shots in the first three games, good for a.947 save percentage, and he was still one of the reasons Vegas had a chance to control the series before Sunday’s swing game. The goaltending battle has already shaped the matchup, even if neither Hart nor Lukáš Dostál has delivered a clean postseason to this point.
Hart’s numbers explain both the promise and the concern. His minus-3.18 goals saved above expected was the third-worst mark in the playoffs, and his.867 save percentage on high-danger shots shows he has been more reliable when the chances are coming from close range than from the middle of the ice. He has been far less secure on those mid-slot looks, with a.762 save percentage there this postseason.
Dostál has lived the opposite version of that profile. He entered the series with a.874 save percentage this postseason, but he also carried minus-7.15 goals saved above expected and had allowed 18 goals on high-danger shots. He has been better on mid- and long-range looks, but not nearly as sharp when the puck gets to the doorstep, where his.700 save percentage has left Anaheim exposed.
That contrast showed up again in Game 4. Dostál exited Game 3 after allowing three quick goals in a blowout loss, then turned around Sunday and made several key saves down the stretch of a Ducks win. The Ducks got three of their goals from 47, 28, 12 and 56 feet, while Vegas answered with three of its own from five, nine and eight feet, a sharp reminder that this series has been driven less by structure than by what each goalie has been able to stop.
For Vegas, the question is whether Hart can carry the early form that gave the Golden Knights the split into a tighter, more demanding stretch of the series. For Anaheim, it is whether Dostál can keep enough pucks out after a postseason that has already included too many goals from dangerous areas. Tuesday’s Game 5 will not answer everything, but it will tell the next story of a series that has already been decided as much by the crease as by the skaters in front of it.
