Winners, losers from Game 1 of 2026 Stanley Cup Final: Golden Knights' Tomas Hertl plays hero

Hertl has been cold throughout most of the postseason. Entering Tuesday night, he had nine points (three goals and six assists) in the playoffs. However, the 32-year-old may be elevating his game in what could be one of his last chances to win a championship. He now knows that players often have few opportunities to hoist the cup. 

Golden Knights defensemen Shea Theodore and Brayden McNabb

The Golden Knights should feel lucky to feature a top defensive pairing in Theodore and McNabb, who, once again, made an impact in Game 1. Theodore scored a goal 13:28 into the first period and logged two assists. He and center Colton Sissons assisted on Hertl's clutch score in the third period. 

McNabb, meanwhile, didn't score but was an excellent facilitator, recording a team-high three assists. It must be nice for Vegas that it can count on its defensive, playmaking duo, which provided plenty of juice on both ends of the ice.

Fast starts

Hurricanes left winger Nikolaj Ehlers scored the first goal of the game 25 seconds into the first period. Vegas responded in the second period. Trailing 2-1, Golden Knights left winger Ivan Barbashev scored on a snapshot 30 seconds into the interval. In doing so, he made Stanley Cup Final history.  

Per NHL public relations, Game 1 on Tuesday night marked the first time a goal was scored in the opening 30 seconds of the first period and the second. It's even more impressive, considering there have been 108 installments of the Stanley Cup Final and 566 all-time games in the championship series. 

Losers 

Hurricanes goalie Frederik Andersen

The goaltending battle between Carter Hart (Golden Knights) and Andersen is one of the biggest in the series. The Hurricanes star lost the first draw on Tuesday night. 

Andersen went 18-of-23 on save attempts, posting a below-average .783 save percentage. Hart wasn't much better, going 23-of-27 on save attempts (.852 save percentage, below average). That said, he was stingy in the third period, allowing just one goal. 

Andersen has been excellent otherwise this postseason, giving the Hurricanes reason to believe he will rebound in Game 2. Entering Tuesday night, he ranked first in the postseason in goals-against-average (1.41) and third in save percentage (.931).

Hurricanes' top forwards

The Hurricanes need more from center Sebastian Aho, right winger Seth Jarvis and left winger Andrei Svechnikov in Game 2. If they turn in another performance similar to the one in Game 1, this series could be over soon. 

None recorded a point on Tuesday night, and Svechnikov was sloppy with the puck, leading Carolina forwards in giveaways (two). Perhaps it was Stanley Cup Final jitters or some other form of anxiety. Whatever it was, the Hurricanes need the unit to snap out of it to strike back in the series. 

NHL fans in Indianapolis

Indianapolis hockey fans who tuned into Game 1 probably liked watching Ehlers score the game's opening goal. They would've liked it even more if they had heard ESPN commentator Sean McDonough's call. 

WRTV, ABC's affiliate in Indianapolis, experienced technical difficulties during Game 1, so viewers couldn't hear the broadcast and instead heard in-arena sound. Take a listen below.

Some snarky social media user may say that actually makes those fans a winner since they didn't have to hear commentary they disagreed with. Let's be real, though. Fans in Indianapolis would've loved to hear the call, and the mishap likely left them confused.