Vegas Stole Home Ice and the President's Trophy

The Colorado Avalanche finished first in the entire NHL this season. Vegas went into Ball Arena on May 20 and took Game 1 anyway, winning 4-2. The Knights lead the Western Conference Final 1-0, and they got there the way they always do.

Road swagger, perfect timing, and a midseason coaching change that's still paying off.

Tortorella's March Gamble Is Paying Off

Bruce Cassidy got fired on March 29.

John Tortorella walked in and went 7-0-1 to close the regular season. Now he's eight wins from a second Stanley Cup. And the bet Vegas made on him is looking smarter by the night.

Look, Tortorella won in Tampa in 2004.

He's coached five different teams to the conference final. The man doesn't flinch. When the Knights needed a reset midseason, they got a guy who's been here before. Multiple times. And it shows. The players trust it. Vegas blocked 23 shots as a team in Game 1. That's not accident. That's a coach who got his message across.

Marner Finally Looks Like Himself

Here's the number that should scare every team left in the playoffs: Mitch Marner has 19 points in 13 games this postseason. Nineteen. He managed 63 points in 70 career playoff games with Toronto. Let that sink in.

He put up 7 goals and 12 assists through two rounds, then set up Pavel Dorofeyev's power-play goal in Game 1 to widen his lead to three points over every other skater in the playoffs. Marner looks faster, hungrier, and more dangerous than he ever did in a Leafs uniform. Dorofeyev himself has 10 goals. Most among all skaters.

And keeps getting to the net at exactly the right moments.

This is what happens when talented players finally get a system that fits them. Toronto had the pieces but never put them together.

Vegas did it in months.

Makar Absence Shook Colorado More Than Anyone Expected

Cale Makar didn't play Game 1.

Upper body, day-to-day. The Avalanche lost their backbone and it showed immediately.

Nathan MacKinnon got held off the scoresheet for the first time in seven games. Colorado trailed in a series for the first time all postseason. Carter Hart stopped 36 of 38 shots and still got the win.

That's what happens when you take your best defenseman out of the lineup against a team that knows how to attack.

Makar averages 24:59 a night.

That's not replaceable depth. That's the engine. If he's out for Game 2, the Avalanche have a real problem. They can survive one game without him. They probably can't survive two.

What's Next

Vegas has five conference final appearances in nine seasons. No expansion-era franchise comes close to that run. They won the Cup in 2023 and they're doing it again with a other cast.

Game 2 is tonight at Ball Arena.

Watch Dorofeyev — he's scoring at a pace that doesn't slow down. Watch whether Makar gets back on the ice. And watch MacKinnon. He hasn't gone quiet two games in a row all spring.

The Presidents' Trophy means nothing if you can't protect it. Vegas just reminded everyone why they were the real threat all along.

Vegas Golden Knights beat Avalanche 4-2 in Game 1 | Mitch Marner leads playoffs with 19 points | Makar missed Game 1 | Coghlan's first playoff goal | Game 1 boxscore