The Vegas Golden Knights eliminated the Anaheim Ducks from the playoffs and moved on to the Western Conference Finals on Thursday night. In doing so, they also helped out the Washington Capitals.
With the series loss, Anaheim’s first-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, which the Capitals own through the John Carlson trade-deadline deal, officially resides at 18th overall. If the Ducks had won the series, the pick would have shot up to at least 28th in the first round.
The Capitals now own the 16th and 18th overall selections in the first round. The Caps have made it known that they are in the market for an upgrade at forward and could use one or both of their first-round picks to achieve that goal.
The Golden Knights clinched their six-game series victory on the road in Anaheim with a 5-1 mauling of the Ducks. Mitch Marner, likely the current favorite for the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP, kicked off the scoring with the best goal of the postseason so far.
Mitch Marner scores unbelievable goal in Golden Knights playoff win
Vegas moves on to play the Colorado Avalanche in the Western Conference Finals. Meanwhile, Carlson is set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, with rumors that he had preliminary talks with the Ducks about a contract extension.
The 2026 NHL Draft will take place on June 26–27 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo.
