The Golden Knights extended their point streak to six games. That was the good news Saturday night.

The bad news was they had to play overtime again. And it was their downfall again.

Anaheim Ducks left wing Cutter Gauthier scored with 1:03 remaining in the extra frame off a turnover from right wing Mitch Marner, and the Knights lost 4-3 to the leaders in the Pacific Division for their sixth straight overtime defeat.

Marner went to reload behind the net but fumbled the puck right to Gauthier, who quickly turned and fired it into the back of the net.

It’s the fourth OT loss that came thanks to a giveaway.

“They need to manage the puck better. That’s what needs to change,” Knights coach Bruce Cassidy said. “There’s no complicated answer to this one. It’s been four games we’ve lost in overtime where we’ve had the puck and it’s been in the net three to five seconds later. That’s on us to manage it better.”

Defenseman Shea Theodore scored to extend his point streak to four games, and right wing Braeden Bowman scored for the fourth time in six games since he’s been called up from Henderson.

Goaltender Akira Schmid made 28 saves in his third consecutive start for the Knights (10-4-7).

The Ducks (14-7-1) defeated the Knights for the second time this month. The first was also a 4-3 finish in overtime on Nov. 8 decided by another giveaway, leading to defenseman Jacob Trouba scoring the winning goal.

Anaheim holds a two-point lead on the Knights for first place in the division, but the Knights have a game in hand. Goaltender Lukas Dostal made 29 saves.

“That’s a three- or four-point swing right there,” defenseman Zach Whitecloud said. “Those are the games that are exciting. They’re the best in the Pacific right now and every team is trying to measure up against one another in each division game.”

Here are three takeaways from the loss:

1. Quick start doesn’t last

The Knights have stressed getting off to better starts. They did in the first period with two goals in a span of 1:12.

Theodore’s shot from the point beat a screened Dostal at 3:25 for his second goal in three games. Bowman, who had the screen on Theodore’s goal, parked himself in front of the net and put home a rebound at 4:37.

But the Ducks had a response, and theirs didn’t take long. Defenseman Jackson LaCombe’s point shot got through traffic and beat Schmid at 7:43, and defenseman Olen Zellweger’s rocket from the left circle tied it 34 seconds later, again through traffic.

“That’s something we can do better, get a block or box out,” Cassidy said. “I thought a lot of our game was really good.”

Schmid gave up goals on Anaheim’s first three shots. His teammates came through late with center Tomas Hertl deflecting Eichel’s shot at 17:59 to restore the Knights’ lead.

2. Goalie duel in the second

Schmid settled down after a shaky start, but so did Dostal.

Schmid’s best saves came on Anaheim center Chris Kreider, including a breakaway chance midway through the second off a bad line change from the Knights.

Dostal answered with some stops of his own, including an in-tight pad save on right wing Reilly Smith at the tail end of the Knights’ fourth power play of the game.

Schmid saw 13 shots in the second period but couldn’t make the 13th save. Ducks right wing Troy Terry finished a two-on-one at 13:50 to tie it 3-3.

3. Overtime woes

Yes, the three-on-three play doesn’t mean much in the grand scheme of things. It won’t matter when the Knights get into the playoffs. The bottom line is they’ve still earned points in 17 of 21 games.

But six straight overtime losses is quite the stretch.

“It’s a couple extra points we’re losing right now,” Hertl said.

The Knights couldn’t get any changes in overtime, either. Anaheim’s sustained pressure made it tough for the Knights to get off the ice, notably on the first shift. Eichel and Theodore were on the ice for nearly the first two minutes.

Losing an extra point seven times is a problem. Doing it twice against the top team in the division is also an issue. It has to start clicking at some point.

“We have to change something because if you’re losing the points in overtime, it can hurt,” Hertl said.

Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.