Tortorella and Former Canucks Propel Vegas to Western Conference Final

The Vegas Golden Knights are soaring into the Western Conference Final, thanks in part to their newly appointed head coach, John Tortorella. Hired just eight games before the end of the 2025-26 regular season, Tortorella has quickly made an impact, guiding the team to only five losses across both the regular season and playoffs since his arrival.

In the first round of the 2026 playoffs, the Golden Knights dispatched the Utah Mammoth in six games. They then faced a formidable challenge from the Anaheim Ducks, who had recently taken down the Edmonton Oilers. Vegas prevailed in a hard-fought series that extended to six games, showcasing their resilience and determination.

This marks the fifth time in the franchise’s nine-year history that the Golden Knights have reached the Conference Finals. With two trips to the Stanley Cup Final already under their belt—losing to the Washington Capitals in their inaugural season and winning the championship in 2023—they have established themselves as a perennial contender, having missed the playoffs only once, back in 2022.

Tortorella, a seasoned coach with 13 postseason appearances, previously led the Tampa Bay Lightning to a Stanley Cup victory in 2003-04. His experience is invaluable, though he has only reached the Conference Finals once before, with the New York Rangers in 2012. During his brief tenure with the Vancouver Canucks, his team finished 36-35-11 and failed to qualify for the playoffs.

Joining Tortorella in the quest for the Cup is Nic Dowd, another former Canuck. Dowd played 40 games with Vancouver before enjoying a successful eight-season stint in Washington. While he didn’t register any points in the second-round series against the Ducks, his contributions were crucial against the Mammoth, where he netted the game-winning goal in Game 1 and scored in Game 3.

Also making waves in the playoffs is defenseman Ben Hutton, who has spent the most time with Vancouver among the former Canucks on the Golden Knights roster. Although he did not participate in the first round, Hutton returned to the lineup against Anaheim, providing solid depth on the blue line and averaging 14 to 16 minutes of ice time per game since joining Vegas in the 2021-22 season.

The Golden Knights will now prepare to face the Colorado Avalanche in the Western Conference Final. Colorado advanced with relative ease, defeating the Minnesota Wild in five games and sweeping the Los Angeles Kings in the opening round.

Note: This recap is an independently written summary based on publicly available reporting.