The Anaheim Ducks wrapped up their first road trip of the season with a 2-1 overtime loss to the struggling Pittsburgh Penguins (Oct. 31). They managed a point, but it was a disappointing finish in a very winnable game marked by much of the same trends the Ducks have displayed in the campaign’s first few weeks.
Overly relying on the efforts of your goaltender while struggling to finish your own grade-A scoring chances were the themes of the last four games. If these trends hold, then the Ducks will fall behind in the Pacific Division standings fast. As we look ahead at the upcoming six-game homestand, which begins tonight with the Chicago Blackhawks and features a handful of winnable games, let’s review some of the drawbacks, and strengths, of the Ducks’ game so far.
Inability to Limit Opposition’s Offensive Pressure Is Concerning
The Ducks collected points in half of the games of the recent road trip. However, the moments in which they sustained possession and generated consistent offense were few and far between, which forced them to lean on their defense and goaltending to keep them in games. You could make the argument that their best game of the trip was their loss to the New York Rangers, because they held the Rangers stars in check and matched their shot and scoring chance totals pretty evenly. Every other game was a disaster. They were outshot 34-26 against the New Jersey Devils, 41-22 against the New York Islanders, and 45-23 against the Penguins.
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A young team, especially on the defensive end, is going to be defending a lot but being outshot by nearly a 2:1 margin in consecutive games is an indictment of both this team’s inability to sustain offense and their reliance on their goaltending to get the job done. The Ducks are looking at blowout losses like the one they suffered against the Devils if it weren’t for the early-season herculean efforts of Lukáš Dostál.
Untimely Miscues Are Proving Costly
The road trip, particularly the loss to the Penguins, accentuated the impact that small mistakes and failures to execute can have in games. The Ducks had multiple superb scoring chances in the late stages of the third period including a breakaway chance by Trevor Zegras and Cutter Gauthier apiece. You can’t ask for a better chance to put a team away than on a breakaway in the game’s final minute. Those are the moments when you need your elite talent to come through, especially in a game in which the Ducks barely had the puck. Instead, the Penguins held on and got the game to overtime.
The overtime session didn’t go well either because the Ducks made a fundamental error in the defensive zone: Pavel Mintyukov and Frank Vatrano left it before Gauthier secured the puck. They were thinking offense before their defensive responsibilities. Gauthier loses the battle, no one was watching Sidney Crosby, who was left all alone and beat Dostál. That’s the game. Sure, Gauthier may have mishandled the puck, but he was flanked by Penguins defenders on both sides and there was no one else back on defense. In a matter of seconds, mental errors resulted in the end of a game and turned what could’ve been an uplifting finish to the road trip into a rather disappointing one. The Ducks really could’ve used the extra point.
Gauthier Getting Close, Ducks Need More From Killorn and Zegras
Another drawback to the season so far has been the lack of production from some players expected to be a bigger piece to the puzzle than they were last season. That list includes Alex Killorn and Zegras. They connected for the Ducks’ only tally against the Penguins but have otherwise been quiet. Killorn ended up as one of the more consistent players offensively over the second half of 2023-24 and was supposed to carry that momentum into year two as a Duck. That has not been the case so far. Zegras likewise entered the season healthy and ready to bounce back, and he’s had his moments, but he has been far from the nightly impact player we expected he would be.
The Ducks rank last in the NHL in goals scored with 22, an average of 2.2 per game. Obviously, that will not be enough, and they will need the production from their full complement of talented forwards if they are going to remain competitive. This includes Gauthier, who has collected four assists so far but has yet to find the back of the net. He has been around the net and gotten excellent looks but needs to find twine soon given the surplus of opportunity he gets with elite players in optimal situations.
Dostal, Terry, and Carlsson are the Stars So Far
The strengths of the Ducks’ season so far can be summed up in three names: Troy Terry, Leo Carlsson, and Dostál. Terry and Carlsson sit first and second in team scoring, respectively, and have been making plays all season long. They are the only two dependable sources of offense early on, but they will need help, as will Dostál, the other bright spot in the lineup. He has dazzled in the first few weeks of 2024-25 and sits second in the NHL with a goals-against average (GAA) of 1.99, and first in save percentage (SV%) at .945.
The Ducks seem content to ride Dostál and his hot streak given they have minimized opportunities for James Reimer, who has only made two appearances in 10 games. The goalie rotation will be anyone’s guess when John Gibson recovers from his emergency appendectomy, but for now, it’s rightfully Dostál’s net.
Ducks Need to Get Back on Track Against Blackhawks
The Blackhawks, the Ducks’ opponent this evening, have very little going for them other than the ascension of Connor Bedard. Both teams need this game, but the Ducks need it more. A game against the Blackhawks, a team that struggles defensively, is the perfect opportunity for them to work on their offensive zone game, sustain pressure and possession, and generate more chances than their opposition. We’ll see who steps up tonight. Puck drop is 5 PM PST at Honda Center.
