Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Shea Theodore, center, celebrates with teammates after scoring against the Anaheim Ducks during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shea Theodore scored two goals for the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday night in a 4-1 victory over the Anaheim Ducks, who lost Trevor Zegras to a potentially serious lower-body injury.
William Karlsson and Alexander Holtz also scored and Ilya Samsonov made 19 saves for the division-leading Golden Knights, who improved to 8-1-1 against the Pacific Division with their sixth win in eight games overall. Vegas has beaten Anaheim in all three meetings this season.
Jackson LaCombe scored and John Gibson stopped 30 shots for the last-place Ducks.
Karlsson scored his fifth goal late in the first period. He has 16 goals and 27 points in 37 games against the Ducks, who drafted the Swede and then lost him in a regrettable trade with Columbus nearly 10 years ago.
Theodore, another Ducks draft pick sent to Vegas in a dubious expansion-draft deal, scored early in the second period.
LaCombe beat Samsonov with a long shot through traffic, scoring goals in back-to-back games for the first time.
Holtz tapped in his first goal since Oct. 22 early in the third off Tanner Pearson’s centering pass. Theodore added an empty-net goal.
Ducks defenseman Cam Fowler returned from an 11-game injury absence.
Takeaways
Golden Knights: They’ve rebounded smartly from a 6-0 loss to Utah last weekend.
Ducks: They can’t establish any momentum or consistency again this season, and a long-term injury for Zegras would set them back even more.
Key moment
Zegras ominously needed help to leave the ice after the noncontact injury in the second period. He has yet to regain his 60-point form from two seasons ago, but he remains one of Anaheim’s few offensive talents.
Key stat
1 — The Knights’ total penalties in their past two games. Vegas committed one minor in Anaheim after going penalty-free against Edmonton on Tuesday.
Up next
Vegas hosts Dallas on Friday night. Anaheim hosts Minnesota on Friday.
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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL
By GREG BEACHAM
AP Sports Writer
