The Tahoe Knight Monsters played the Kansas City Maverickers in game one of the 2026 Kelly Cup Playoffs. The game was at Cable Dahmer Arena. The Tahoe Knight Monsters finished the regular season in fourth place in the Mountain Division with a record of 35-30-7. The Tahoe Knight Monsters are the ECHL affiliate of the Vegas Golden Knights. The Tahoe Knight Monsters finished the regular season with a win over the Rapid City Rush. The Kansas City Maverrickers finished the regular season in first place in the Mountain Division with a record of 55-12-6. The Kansas City Mavericks are the ECHL affiliate of the Seattle Kraken. The Mavericks finished the regular season with a loss to the Allen Americans. This was the first playoff game for both teams.
Alex Tracy got the start in net for the Tahoe Knight Monsters. It was his fifth game played for Tahoe this season. It was his first playoff game this season. Jack LaFontaine got the start in net for the Kansas City Mavericks. It was his thirtieth game played this season. It was his first game of the playoffs.
Sixteen seconds into the game, Luke Loheit of the Kansas City Mavericks was called for kneeing. He was given a ten-minute game misconduct and a five-minute major penalty. Eight minutes into the game, Olivier LeBlanc of the Tahoe Knight Monsters was called for tripping. With under two minutes left in the opening period, Kevin Wall of Tahoe was called for slashing. With under thirty seconds left in the first period, Sloan Stanick of Tahoe was called for cross-checking. At the same time, Marcus Crawford of Kansas City was called for unsportsmanlike conduct. With fifteen seconds left in the period, Casey Bailey of Tahoe was called for roughing. At the same time, Lucas Sowder of Kansas City was called for slashing. The score was tied at 0-0 after the first period.
Three minutes into the second period, Artur Cholach of the Tahoe Knight Monsters was called for interference. The Kansas City Mavericks scored on the first goal of the game on the power play. The goal was scored by Jackson Jutting. His goal was assisted by Landon McCallum.
Six minutes into the second period, Samuel Mayer of Tahoe was called for roughing. At the same time, Hudson Wilson of Kansas City was given a double minor for roughing. Seven minutes into the second period, Luke Adam of Tahoe was called for embellishment. At the same time, Jake McLaughlin of Kansas City was called for tripping. Nine minutes into the second period, Bobo Carpenter scored for the Mavericks. His goal was assisted by Justin Janicke.
Less than thirty seconds after Kansas City’s second goal, Trent Swick of Tahoe was called for roughing. With under eight minutes left in the second period, Jack Randl of Kansas City was called for high-sticking. With under four minutes left in the second period, Jackson Berezowski scored to give the Mavericks a three-goal lead. The goal was assisted by Jack Randl and Thomas Farrell.
With under a minute left in the second period, Casey Bailey of Tahoe was called for roughing. The Kansas City Mavericks had a three-goal lead going into the third period.
Two minutes into the third period, Kaelan Taylor of the Tahoe Knight Monsters was called for hooking. Five minutes into the third period, the Tahoe Knight Monsters scored. The goal was scored by Sloan Stanick. His goal was assisted by Jordan Gustafson and Olivier LeBlanc.
Midway through the third period, Tahoe was called for too many men. The Kansas City Mavericks scored again on the power play. The goal was scored by Lucas Sowder. His goal was assisted by Landon McCallum.
With under a minute left in the game, Casey Carreau of Kansas City was called for delay of game. The final score was 4-1, Kansas City Mavericks. With that result, the Mavericks took a 1-0 series lead.
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The opening period set the tone for what initially looked like a tightly contested battle between the Tahoe Knight Monsters and the Kansas City Mavericks. Despite multiple penalties disrupting the flow, neither team was able to fully seize control early on. The frequent trips to the penalty box created a choppy rhythm, preventing either side from establishing sustained offensive pressure. Still, the score remained close after one period, leaving the game wide open heading into the middle frame.
That balance quickly disappeared in the second period, where Kansas City completely took over. The Mavericks found another gear offensively, scoring three unanswered goals and flipping the game on its head. Their ability to capitalize on opportunities—whether off the rush, sustained pressure, or defensive breakdowns—highlighted the gap in execution between the two teams during that stretch. By the end of the period, Kansas City had built a commanding lead, and all the momentum was firmly on their side heading into the third.
Tahoe attempted to respond early in the final period, managing to get on the board and briefly injecting life into their comeback hopes. However, that momentum was short-lived. Kansas City answered later in the period with another goal, effectively shutting the door and eliminating any realistic chance of a Knight Monsters rally. In the end, it was that dominant second period—those three unanswered goals—that ultimately decided the game.
A major storyline from this matchup was Tahoe’s offensive struggles. The Knight Monsters simply couldn’t keep pace with Kansas City’s scoring output, and their inability to generate consistent pressure made it difficult to mount any kind of sustained comeback. Against a team as strong and structured as the Mavericks, falling behind by multiple goals is a tough hole to climb out of—and Tahoe learned that the hard way in this one.
With the win, Kansas City takes the early series lead, but the bigger picture still looms large. There is plenty of hockey left to be played, and this series is far from over. The key questions now shift toward adjustments and resilience. Can the Knight Monsters elevate their play and match Kansas City’s intensity? Will the Mavericks continue to perform at this high level, or was this a peak performance? And perhaps most importantly, does Tahoe have what it takes to knock off one of the top teams in the league?
As the series continues, those questions will begin to get answered on the ice.
The Kansas City Mavericks outshot the Tahoe Knight Monsters 35-16. The Mavericks had the better shot percentage. Tahoe went 0 for 4 on the power play. Kansas City went 2 for 7 on the power play. Tahoe had 11 penalties totaling 22 minutes. Kansas City had 9 penalties totaling 29 minutes. Alex Tracy saved 31 of 35 shots for a 89% Save percentage for Tahoe. Jack LaFontaine saved 15 of 16 shots for a save percentage of 94% for Kansas City.
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The Wheeling Nailers lead the Reading Royals 1-0. The Maine Mariners lead the Adirondack Thunder 1-0. The Florida Everblades lead the Savannah Ghost Pirates 1-0. The South Carolina Stingrays lead the Atlanta Gladiators 1-0. The Fort Wayne Komets lead the Indy Fuel 1-0. The Toledo Walleye lead the Bloomington Bison 1-0. The Kansas City Mavericks lead the Tahoe Knight Monsters 1-0. The Allen Americans lead the Idaho Steelhead 2-0.
The Tahoe Knight Monsters will take on the Kansas City Mavericks for game two of the 2026 ECHL Kelly Cup Playoffs Western Conference Mountain Division semifinals on Saturday, April 25th. This game will be in Independence, Missouri, at the Cable Dahmer Arena. Puck drop is scheduled for 4:00 PM.
Zac Electrifly 
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