Eichel scores in OT as Golden Knights rally to beat Maple Leafs 6-5

Vegas Golden Knights center Jack Eichel (9) and teammates celebrate his goal against the Toronto Maple Leafs during overtime of an NHL hockey game Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Candice Ward)

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Jack Eichel scored at 2:44 of overtime, Mitch Marner had two assists against his former team and Adin Hill made 23 saves in his return as Vegas rallied to defeat the Toronto Maple Leafs 6-5 on Thursday night for the Golden Knights’ sixth straight win.

Tomas Hertl forced overtime on a 6-on-5 with a goal with 7 seconds left off a pass from Eichel, who had four points.

Pavel Dorofeyev scored two power-play goals for Vegas and appeared to have a hat trick with 4:10 left to tie it, but with the ice littered with lids, the Maple Leafs successfully challenged the play for offside.

Mark Stone extended his points streak (nine goals, eight assists) to 10 games with a goal and two assists, Hertl finished with a goal and an assist and Keegan Kolesar had a goal.

Marner, acquired last summer in a sign-and-trade, had played for his hometown team since 2016 and was booed by the sizable number of Maple Leafs fans beginning from pregame introductions. Marner and the Golden Knights play at Toronto on Jan. 23.

Hill played his first game since a lower-body injury on Oct. 20. Toronto got to Hill for three goals in the first 9:57 to build a 3-1 lead, but he made some key stops to keep Vegas in it.

William Nylander and John Tavares each had a goal and an assist for Toronto. Nylander, who leads the Maple Leafs with 48 points, went out in the first period because of a lower-body injury.

Auston Matthews, Morgan Rielly and Scott Laughton also scored for the Maple Leafs. Matias Maccelli and Matthew Knies each had two assists, and Joseph Woll made 28 stops.

This was Maple Leafs forward Nicholas Robertson’s 200th career game.

Up next

Maple Leafs: At Winnipeg on Saturday.

Golden Knights: Host Nashville on Saturday.

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Mark Anderson, The Associated Press