ANAHEIM, Calif. — Mitch Marner has been dominant in the first two rounds of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and seems entirely unbothered with the now-outdated narrative that he couldn’t get it done in the postseason.

Vegas’ superstar forward scored a natural hat trick on Friday night at Honda Center to lift the Golden Knights to a 6-2 win and take a 2-1 lead in their second-round series against the Anaheim Ducks.

Marner now leads the NHL with 13 playoff points and is tied for the league lead with six goals through just nine games. It’s a stark contrast to the narrative that followed him out of Toronto: that of a supremely talented player who would shrink under the spotlight and physicality of postseason hockey.

“I think he’s very confident in what he brings,” Vegas coach John Tortorella said of Marner after Game 3. “People give him s— all of the time, about the playoffs, and this and that. I don’t think it bothers him a lick. He just plays. He’s a hockey player. I’m glad he’s doing some things for us.”

It wasn’t as though Marner played poorly in the playoffs for the Maple Leafs. His 63 points over nine postseasons led all Toronto skaters over that span. The feeling was that Marner didn’t elevate his game to another stratosphere when his team needed it most. He didn’t put teammates on his back and carry them to a much-needed win.

That’s precisely what he did for the Golden Knights in Game 3.

After uninspired performances by Vegas in games 1 and 2, Friday’s game in Anaheim felt like a pivotal moment in the series — a line drawn in the sand. The series was tied, but there was no denying that the Ducks were the superior team in both games in Las Vegas, and the Golden Knights were desperate to avoid a third.

For the second time in a week, Marner delivered his best game when Vegas needed it most. Previously, his two-goal, three-point night helped the Golden Knights eliminate the Utah Mammoth in Game 6 of the first round. This time, Marner’s three-goal, four-point night helped them swing momentum in their favor against Anaheim.

Along the way, he’s destroying the narrative that followed him from Toronto to Las Vegas.

Asked if he takes any personal satisfaction in that, Marner quickly replied, “No. Not really. There’s a lot of work to still go. It’s always nice to contribute and try to win games.”

Smile if you just scored your first career playoff hat trick 😃🪄 pic.twitter.com/nCdpHSrfYH

— Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) May 9, 2026

Marner was intentionally subdued and modest after the game, but it seemed clear by his play and his body language that, in his mind, this is nothing surprising or new. He’s just doing what he does: play great hockey.

Marner’s first of many brilliant plays on Friday night came on the penalty kill in the first period. He anticipated a pass by the Ducks’ power play, intercepted the puck and zipped up the ice. Realizing he was alone in the offensive zone with three Ducks around him, Marner quickly threw on the brakes, bought himself space and then dropped the puck to defenseman Brayden McNabb, who fired a shot past Anaheim goalie Lukáš Dostál to give Vegas a 2-0 lead.

“It was a great play by Mitchie,” McNabb said.

Sitting beside him at the postgame media podium, Marner scoffed playfully.

“I try to always be an energizer guy, and a guy who goes out there and brings a lot of passion and energy to games,” Marner said. “I always try to want the puck on my tape. I want to try to make the plays.”

In the final seconds of the first period, Marner found a rebound in front of the Ducks’ net and potted it into a wide-open net to extend Vegas’ lead to 3-0 before intermission.

“Mitch was fantastic,” said defenseman Shea Theodore, who scored the game’s opening goal. “He’s just so smart. He’s so skilled. You can use him in every situation. It’s good to see him elevating his game even more.”

Midway through the second period, Theodore found Marner as he was streaking toward the net on the weak side. Anaheim backup goalie Ville Husso, who replaced Dostal in the net after the first period, sprawled to get his left pad across, but Marner calmly danced around him and tucked the puck into the yawning cage.

“I think that he probably scored in a couple of different ways,” Ducks coach Joel Quenneville said of Marner. “But at the same time, I think how we defended the rush one time was not the right way, or we did this, we did that. But certainly, great players find a way to find the puck at the right time. And that’s one of his strengths. Played a good game.”

Marner completed the natural hat trick with his third straight goal near the end of the second period, when he curled from behind the Anaheim net and beat Husso with a shot to the short side.

After playing center for nearly half of the regular season and most of the playoffs, Tortorella moved Marner back to his natural position on the wing midway through Game 2 on Wednesday. He showed instant chemistry with William Karlsson, and the two read off each other incredibly well on Friday night.

“He sees passes that aren’t there, but for him, they are,” Karlsson said. “He makes it work. I see now why he has been so successful throughout his career.”

Even in a rocking, sold-out Honda Center, Marner could be heard orchestrating plays with his linemates on the ice.

“He’s very vocal out there,” Karlsson said. “He makes it easy for you. I always know where he is.”

“I’m always trying to talk, and always trying to let people know where I’m at on the ice, to give them a little bit easier of a mindset, especially if their back is turned,” Marner explained. “I want the same thing back. I tell Karlsson and Howden the same thing. ‘If you’re open, let me know and I’ll try to get it to you as quickly as I can.’”

In Marner’s 127 minutes of even-strength ice time this postseason, Vegas holds commanding edges in shot attempts (132-96), shots on goal (59-48) and scoring chances (60-36).

“There have been a lot of different moments in these playoffs so far that people have stepped up and made big plays,” he said. “I think again tonight, a lot of great plays by people around me to set me up in a spot I could succeed in.”

Vegas has gotten game-winning goals from five different players in six postseason wins. Theodore and Brett Howden both scored overtime goals. Pavel Dorofeyev had a hat trick in the first round. But as modest as Marner would like to be, as much as he’d like to deflect the attention, there’s no doubt he has been the biggest hero to this point.

Before Friday, Marner’s career high for goals in a single postseason was three. He matched that total in a single game and is now tied for the league lead this postseason. He also has multiple game-winning goals for the first time.

“I don’t think there’s ever a problem with his confidence,” Tortorella said. “People talk about him, this, that, and the other. I don’t think he listens to it, whether it be good or bad. He’s just a hockey player. I never worry about how he feels about it. That’s why he’s one of the best players around. He’s got that proper mindset.”