Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Carter Hart hasn’t been quite at his best with his performances in the Stanley Cup Final against the Carolina Hurricanes. He has conceded 20 goals in the first five games, including four in Game 5 at Lenovo Center, where the Hurricanes crowd went after him.

The fans directed “no means no!” chants at Hart throughout the series in Raleigh, referencing a 2018 case involving him and four other Canadian players from which they were all acquitted last summer.

“It's just noise,” the Vegas goaltender addressed the chants alongside teammate Mitch Marner. “I mean, both atmospheres and both buildings have been really loud and just a lot of fun to playing. Yeah, just noise.”

Notably, during the trial, Hart was suspended and ineligible to play for the Philadelphia Flyers, but after getting acquitted, he returned to competitive action on ice last winter.

The NHL reinstated Hart on October 15, 2025, alongside the other acquitted players, before he signed a two-year contract worth $4 million with Vegas in the same month. The league officials made him and the rest of them eligible to play from December 1 onwards last year.

Just a day after becoming eligible, Hart competed in his first NHL game in over 20 months after moving from the Flyers to the Golden Knights. Since then, he took part in 18 regular-season games for them with a very commendable 11-3-3 record.

He registered a save percentage of .891 on 422 save attempts and conceded 2.71 goals on average per game.

Since John Tortorella became the new head coach earlier this year, he has shown tremendous faith in Hart.

What Did John Tortorella Say About Carter Hart Ahead Of Game 6 Of The Stanley Cup Final?

Vegas Golden Knights head coach John Tortorella, 67, backed his goaltender, Carter Hart, ahead of Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final despite his indifferent form.

“I know him. I know there's a better game in him. I've seen it throughout the playoffs. I think he's a very good goalie,” Tortorella said. “We've got to do a better job around him. You can look at the numbers -- and you guys, that's what you do, you spit out those numbers -- but I've got to look at things differently.”

After Game 5 on the road, the 27-year-old became the first goaltender in NHL history to allow at least four goals in each of the first five games in the Stanley Cup Final, per NHL.com. Out of 139 save attempts in these games, he completed 119 for a decent save percentage of .856, but still, the results haven’t quite gone in his favor.

Because of this, a reporter asked Tortorella in the postgame press conference on June 11 about having any thoughts of replacing Hart with Adin Hill in the third period. In response, the veteran called it the “stupidest question” he had ever heard in his entire life.

It is important to note that Hill was a key part of the Stanley Cup win with the Golden Knights in 2023.

Will Carter Hart deliver on John Tortorella’s faith during Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final on Sunday, June 14? Give us your prediction in the comments.

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Written by

Arjun Sharma

Edited by

Ankita Yadav