alex killorn

The Ducks’ second-round playoff showdown with the Vegas Golden Knights has become a best-of-three series.

With a 4-3 victory Sunday before a raucous sold-out crowd at the Honda Center, the Ducks evened the series 2-2 as it heads back to Las Vegas for Game 5 on Tuesday. But it wasn’t easy, with the Golden Knights twice rallying from one-goal deficits, only to see the Ducks answer each time.

And the Ducks’ power play, so lethal in the team’s first-round win over Edmonton and so ineffective in the first three games of this series, finally found a spark, scoring goals in each of the first two periods.

The Ducks’ goals came from Beckett Sennecke, Mikael Granlund, Alex Killorn and Ian Moore. Pavel Dorofeyev, Brett Howden and Tomas Hertl scored for Vegas.

The Ducks were fast and physical in the early going, playing with an urgency they lacked in their Game 3 loss. They also did a better job protecting the puck and that paid off with the team’s first power-play goal of the series 8:43 into the first period.

Vegas had killed 11 penalties against the Ducks and 21 in a row dating back to Game 3 in their first-round series against Utah. But after Dylan Coghlan went off for interference, Sennecke teed up a slap shot from the top of the right circle for his fourth goal of the playoffs, putting the Ducks up 1-0.

The lead didn’t last long, however, with Dorofeyev evening things with a power-play goal of his own about a minute and half later. The goal, on a tip-in, was Dorofeyev’s fifth of the postseason.

Ducks defenseman Ian Moore celebrates with teammates after scoring in the third period of a 4-3 win over the Golden Knights in Game 4 on Sunday at Honda Center.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Granlund put the Ducks back on top less than five minutes before the first intermission, taking a pass from Jeffrey Viel along the left-side boards and getting off a shot as he battled Vegas forward Cole Smith. The puck appeared to strike the blade of Smith’s stick as Viel let it go and that proved fortunate for the Ducks since the deflection fooled defenseman Noah Hanifin and goalie Carter Hart, who both let the bouncing puck tumble through them and into the goal.

That lead didn’t last long, either, with Howden tying things again for Vegas 4:04 into the second period. The goal, on the Golden Knights’ ninth shot, was Howden’s seventh of the playoffs, giving him a share of the NHL lead. Mitch Marner assisted on the first two Vegas goals, giving him a league-best 15 points in 10 postseason games.

However, Killorn scored the Ducks’ second power-play less than two minutes before the second intermission, putting the Ducks in front to stay. Moore doubled the lead 3:43 into the third, lining in a slap shot from well above the right circle.

The two-goal lead matched the largest of the series for the Ducks. Hertl cut that in half with 64 seconds to play after Vegas pulled their goalie for an extra attacker. But the Golden Knights got no closer.

Both teams have split their two games at home. The Golden Knights will have the home-ice advantage — if there is one — over the last three games since two are scheduled in Las Vegas.

Sunday’s win marked the sixth consecutive time the Ducks evened a playoff series it trailed 2-1 after three games.

Vegas played without winger Mark Stone, whose 28 goals were second-most on the team during the regular season. Stone, who had a goal and an assist in the first three games against the Ducks, is the team’s all-time playoff scoring leader with 79 points (39 goals, 40 assists) in 94 games. He sustained an undisclosed injury in the first period of Game 3 and his status for the rest of the series is unclear.

Beckett Sennecke and Leo Carlsson scored 42 seconds apart in the third period, Mikael Granlund had a goal and two assists, and the Ducks celebrated their first home playoff game in eight years with a 7-4 victory over the Edmonton Oilers and a 2-1 series lead on Friday night.

Jeffrey Viel and Jackson LaCombe also scored in the third and Lukas Dostal made 20 saves for the upstart Ducks, who have poured in 16 goals in three games to take an early lead in this first-round series against the two-time Western Conference champion Oilers. Mason McTavish and Alex Killorn scored early goals.

Backed by a raucous sellout crowd hungry for Orange County’s first playoff hockey since 2018, the Ducks overcame their season-long defensive shortcomings by outscoring the powerhouse Oilers even after Connor McDavid recorded his first points of the series.

Game 4 is Sunday night in Anaheim.

McDavid had a power-play goal in the third period and an assist for Edmonton. Vasily Podkolzin, Kasperi Kapanen and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins also scored, and Connor Ingram stopped 32 shots.

Appropriately for a defense-deficient series, the Ducks capitalized on two transition sequences early in the third to take control.

Moments after Sennecke ripped a wrist shot for the tiebreaking goal and the precocious rookie’s first playoff point, Carlsson clinically finished a textbook 2-on-1 rush with Troy Terry.

McDavid trimmed the Oilers’ deficit with a fortunate deflection off Pavel Mintyukov’s stick, but the Oilers superstar short-circuited another power play later in the third by cross-checking Tyson Hinds.

Viel then flipped home a backhand with 3:03 left to cap a strong game by the Ducks’ fourth line, and LaCombe lofted home an empty-net goal all the way from the Ducks’ goal line to seal Anaheim’s first home playoff victory since May 14, 2017, in the conference finals against Nashville.

The clubs split the series’ first two games in Edmonton, but the Ducks demonstrated they could stay with the playoff-tested Oilers despite the obvious deficiencies of an inexperienced group that allowed more goals this season than any other playoff team.

Anaheim rode the wave of crowd energy and dominated play early in Game 3, putting 20 shots on Ingram in the first period. Killorn tied it for Anaheim in the second with his 39th career playoff goal.

Oilers forwards Adam Henrique and Jason Dickinson missed Game 3 with injuries.

EDMONTON, Canada — Cutter Gauthier broke a tie off a rebound with 4:52 left and the Ducks beat Edmonton 6-4 on Wednesday night in Game 2 to even the first-round series, with Oilers star Connor McDavid slowed by an apparent leg injury.

McDavid appeared to catch an edge early in the second period after getting tangled up with teammate Mattias Ekholm and the Ducks’ Ian Moore. McDavid briefly left the game before returning, playing just over 24 minutes.

Game 3 is Friday night at Honda Center. Edmonton opened the series Monday night with a 4-3 victory.

Gauthier put the Ducks back in front after Josh Samanski — making his playoff debut — tied it at 4 with 6:09 to go. Ryan Poehling put it away with an empty-netter with 1:10 left, his second goal of the game. He scored shorthanded in the second.

Pavel Mintyukov, right, of the Ducks battles against Kasperi Kapanen of the Oilers in the second period.

(Codie McLachlan / Associated Press)

Gauthier also scored on a first-period power play and set up Alex Killorn’s second-period goal on a man advantage. Killorn added two assists.

Jacob Trouba added a goal, fellow defenseman Jackson LaCombe had three assists and Lukas Dostal stopped 33 shots.

Leon Draisaitl had a goal and an assist for Edmonton. He returned for Game 1 from a lower-body injury against Nashville on March 15.

Connor Murphy and Zach Hyman also scored for the Oilers, and Connor Ingram made 22 saves.