Brock McGinn scored a first-period goal but the Ducks could not build on that early lead tonight in a 3-2 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights at Honda Center.

NHL GAMECENTER | DUCKS STREAM

The loss dropped Anaheim to 5-8-2 on the season and 3-5-0 on home ice.

McGinn and Frank Vatrano scored for the Ducks, the latter bringing the home side back within one in the game’s final minute. Brett Leason tallied two assists for his first multi-point game of the season. Lukas Dostal stopped 37-of-40 Vegas shots in his 12th start of the new campaign.

Nicolas Roy, Tomas Hertl and Pavel Dorofeyev scored for the Golden Knights, who improved to 10-4-2 and have now earned standings points in four of their last five games (3-1-1). Goaltender Adin Hill earned his seventh win of the season with 22 saves.

Anaheim nearly went ahead less than three minutes into the action, when Carlsson beat Hill clean from the high slot through Alex Killorn’s netfront screen, but the shot rang the crossbar and bounced out of play.

Anaheim instead briefly claimed the lead late in the period, as McGinn won the race to a rebound in the slot and punched it home through both Lundestrom and Hill at the Vegas crease.

McGinn has collected six points in 15 appearances this season, doubling his 2023-24 point production in nine fewer games.

Mintyukov’s helper was his first of the season, while Leason has points in back-to-back games.

The lead lasted less than two minutes though, with Vegas leveling the score on a centering pass from former Duck Shea Theodore to Roy in tight.

With two helpers on the night, Theodore moved into a tie for sixth among NHL defensemen in points this season (1-12=13) and a tie for seventh in assists.

Hertl put Vegas ahead early in the second with a power-play goal, a rebound chance in the low slot after a shot by Jack Eichel on left wing.

The assist gave Eichel nine points in his last four games (2-7=9). Now in his third season with Vegas, Eichel ranks third in the NHL in points (5-20=25) and second in assists.

Zellweger hit Anaheim’s second crossbar of the night late in the middle frame, getting his shot through traffic on the power play and past Hill but finding iron.

Dorofeyev pushed the Vegas advantage to 3-1 early in the third, capitalizing on an Anaheim turnover deep in its defensive zone.

The Ducks would have their chances to get back in the game throughout the third, but would not connect until the game’s dying moments when Vatrano converted a backdoor pass from Leason off the rush.

The Ducks conclude a six-game homestand Friday against Detroit.