A fresh hockey season means the renewal of rivalries and all that they bring – excitement, intensity, sometimes chaos, and most of all, fun and entertainment. And while the rivalry between the Anaheim Ducks and Los Angeles Kings has been rather one-sided in recent years, a good old ‘Freeway Faceoff’, especially the first of the season, is always cause for excitement.
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Fresh off a game they had no business being in – a 4-3 overtime loss to the Colorado Avalanche – the Ducks look ahead to their first of four matchups with the Kings in 2024-25. The all-Southern California affair will be the Ducks’ second home game of the young campaign and should be an intense, competitive, and fun matchup between the longtime rivals. Let’s look at why in today’s preview.
Tale of the Tape
The Kings (2-1-2) enter the matchup off a Northeastern road trip to start the season, during which they collected points in four of five games. Perhaps the biggest storyline out of Kings camp is how they were going to proceed with the gaping hole on defense left by Drew Doughty, who unfortunately fractured his ankle in the Kings’ first preseason game (Sept. 25). No single player will replace him, and instead will have to do so by committee, one that includes Brandt Clark, Mikey Anderson, Joel Edmundson, and Jordan Spence, among others. They have gotten into some track meets in the early going, including an 8-7 overtime loss to the Ottawa Senators (Oct. 14) and a 6-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs (Oct. 16), so their defense remains leaky. Therein lies an opportunity for the Ducks.
The Ducks (2-1-1), on the other hand, have collected points in three of four games but are coming off a loss that was reminiscent of their 2022-23 days, where they supplied minimal offense and hung their goaltender out to dry. Ryan Strome spoke on the loss, stating that they “were pretty terrible.” He’s right, and the best thing to do in a game in which you played terribly is to turn the page and focus on the task at hand. The Ducks have not fared well against the Kings in recent seasons and have only earned points in seven of their previous 20 matchups, so there is plenty to keep the minds of head coach Greg Cronin and the Ducks busy.
Timely Scoring and Goaltending Have Been Early Season Saviors
Early on, the Ducks have greatly benefited from timely scoring and superb goaltending. Both factors have allowed them to keep pace with the Avalanche and Utah Hockey Club, two superior offenses. Troy Terry in particular has gotten off to a hot start with three goals in four games. He produced the game-tying goal in the final seconds of the third period against the Avs on Friday to push the game into overtime. Pavel Mintyukov scored twice against Utah, including the tying marker late in the third period as well, which preceded Leo Carlsson’s sweet game-winner on a breakaway. It’s a small sample size, but the Ducks have found their offense at necessary times in games, which has given them opportunities to snag a point or two when it previously seemed unlikely. Timely scoring will be needed tonight if the Ducks are to keep up with the Kings’ attack, led by Adrian Kempe, Kevin Fiala, Quinton Byfield, and the ageless Anze Kopitar.
Goaltending has been central to the early season success of the Ducks as well. James Reimer, picked up off waivers two weeks ago, made his lone appearance against the Vegas Golden Knights team (Oct. 13) that was coming off 12 goals in its previous two games, and held them to three. He figures to spell the young but stellar Lukáš Dostál every so often until John Gibson is back to full health.
Dostál has been sensational in his three appearances thus far, which have included a 30-save shutout win, a 26-save overtime win, and a whopping 45-save overtime loss to the Avalanche, who manhandled the Ducks from start to finish and would’ve won by five goals or more if not for the play of Dostál. He came into the season appearing to already challenge for a starter’s workload, and all he’s done in Gibson’s absence is prove yet again that he is the man in net for the Ducks. Sure, it’s a long season, and durability is critical, but so far, so good, and Gibson will be in a tricky spot when he does come back. Tonight, the Ducks should be in a good spot with either Dostál or Reimer in net.
Ducks Skater to Watch: Frank Vatrano
Several of the players in the Ducks lineup that we expected to get in the goal column by now have done so. Terry has three, Carlsson and Mintyukov have two, and Zegras and Strome have one. However, there are those who haven’t – Cutter Gauthier, Mason McTavish, and Frank Vatrano. Let’s focus on Vatrano for a minute.
He missed the game against the Avalanche but has been his usual competitive and scrappy self otherwise. He started the scoring sequence that led to Terry’s goal against Utah and registered three shots and two shots on goal against the San Jose Sharks and Golden Knights, respectively. Cronin has plugged him into the power play as well, where he has played on his strong side and attempted a few one-timers. Vatrano, who has skated alongside Strome and Terry so far, is in a good position to break through soon. A rivalry matchup is the exact kind of game that will bring the best out of Vatrano, so look for him to make a lot happen tonight against the Kings.
Ducks’ Key to Victory: Better Offense and Facilitation From the Defense
Victory tonight depends on a number of factors, the least of which is a conversion on the power play, but let’s focus on better facilitation from the blue line. The Ducks could not get anything going against the Avalanche, in part because the defense failed to effectively advance the puck. Doing so against the big and skilled forecheck of the Avalanche is no easy task, but the point is, you need your defense to generate offense. That begins with a defense that can break the puck out with their feet or with a great first pass.
This also extends to the power play. The quarterback position is akin to a point guard in basketball, in the way that they must both see the floor and how plays are developing and identify opportunities to set their team up to score. That hasn’t happened at even strength or special teams. Outside of Mintyukov, we haven’t seen much offensively in the early going from Olen Zellweger, Tristan Luneau, or Cam Fowler. However, should any one of them start to turn that around tonight, then the Ducks’ chance to win grows exponentially. The first Freeway Faceoff of the season goes tonight at Honda Center, 5 PM PST.
