Golden Knights HC John Tortorella did not stutter about Game 3 vs. Avalanche

The Vegas Golden Knights are one win away from another trip to the Stanley Cup Final after rallying from a three-goal deficit to beat the Colorado Avalanche 5-3 in Game 3 of the Western Conference Final on Sunday night at T-Mobile Arena. With the win giving Vegas a 3-0 series lead, head coach John Tortorella offered an honest admission about his team’s performance.

“This was a game where we showed some balls,” said Tortorella postgame. “I want them to feel it for a little bit, as far as what they just did against a really good hockey club.”

"This is a game where we showed some balls."

– John Tortorella pic.twitter.com/pIlhRvUNFz

— DNVR Avalanche (@DNVR_Avalanche) May 25, 2026

Colorado controlled the opening period and appeared headed toward a comfortable playoff victory. Gabriel Landeskog opened the scoring at 3:21 of the first period before Nazem Kadri doubled the lead later in the frame. The Avalanche then caught a huge break after Pavel Dorofeyev seemingly cut the deficit to 2-1 on the power play, only for the goal to be waved off and upheld after review. Just 36 seconds later, Jack Drury scored shorthanded on a breakaway to put Colorado ahead 3-0.

At that point, the Golden Knights faced overwhelming odds. Vegas had been 0-19 in playoff history when trailing by three goals, while the Avalanche entered the night with a 74-1 record when leading by three. Colorado had also gone 52-0-0 this season when holding a multi-goal advantage.

The Golden Knights responded immediately in the second period. Captain Mark Stone, returning after missing five games with a lower-body injury, scored on the power play just 19 seconds into the middle frame. Stone finished with a goal and an assist while skating 15:45 and finishing with four hits. William Karlsson cut the lead to one before Keegan Kolesar tied the game with his first point of the postseason after previously going 37 playoff games without a goal.

Tomas Hertl completed the comeback for Vegas at 8:21 of the third period, weaving past Sam Malinski before beating Scott Wedgewood on the backhand for the game-winning goal. Hertl also produced an assist, while Brett Howden clinched the win with an empty-net goal. Mitch Marner and Kaedan Korczak each recorded two assists, and Carter Hart stopped 32 of 35 shots.

The Golden Knights can complete the sweep of the Avalanche when they host Game 4 on Tuesday.

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