William Karlsson of the Vegas Golden Knights.

The Vegas Golden Knights came into the Stanley Cup Final full of momentum following a sweep of the Colorado Avalanche, but against the Carolina Hurricanes, things haven’t come quite as easy. In the Western Conference Finals, Vegas had a +7 differential in that sweep, but for the first time in 2026, they face elimination as the series shifts back to Vegas for a critical Game 6 on Sunday.

Unfortunately for Vegas, across Game’s 4 and 5, the team were outscored 9-5, as they put up arguably their worst game of the post-season on Thursday, with the team needing to win the next two in order to hoist the Stanley Cup for the second time in franchise history.

William Karlsson Ruled out for the Vegas Golden Knights

GettyWilliam Karlsson of the Vegas Golden Knights.

In that Game 5 defeat, the Golden Knights had plenty to worry about, especially after Carter Hart made history, becoming the first player in National Hockey League history to allow four or more goals in the first five games of a Stanley Cup Final series. Head Coach John Tortorella blasted a reporter for questioning Hart’s role within the team following the loss, but in that game, it wasn’t all that the team had to deal with.

After spending months getting healthy and pushing to return to the ice, veteran forward William Karlsson was hit up against the glass, appearing to have injured his arm as he left the game almost immediately. That led to speculation that the 33-year-old could miss the remainder of the series, and while that’s yet to be confirmed, Tortorella officially ruled him out for Sunday’s Game 6.

Can the Golden Knights Keep Their Miracle run Alive?

While the Golden Knights remain a loaded team behind the likes of Jack Eichel, Mark Stone and Mitch Marner, the loss of Karlsson is a massive one, as he has long been a key piece of this organization dating back to their inception in 2018.

After playing just 14 games in the regular season, Karlsson has appeared in the Golden Knights last 15 games in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and it’s been business as usual, as he has posted an impressive 3 goals and 9 points, putting up key performances in their wins over Colorado and Utah. Now, the Golden Knights will likely have to do it without him for the remainder of the series, and given how red-hot the Hurricanes have been in this series offensively, scoring 21 goals across five games, they’ll need to adapt if they want to stay alive.

Beyond this news, Tortorella also confirmed that despite his struggles, Carter Hart will once again be in net for the Golden Knights in this one, despite clearly being tired after starting and playing every single minute for Vegas across their 21 games in the post-season thus far. We’ve seen Vegas on the back foot before, especially in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs, and while the Hurricanes may ultimately end up being too much for the Golden Knights, they can’t be ruled out yet, even with the critical loss of Karlsson.