All has been relatively quiet in Anaheim in the week after American Thanksgiving. The Ducks took an exciting 5-4 victory over their nearby rivals, the Los Angeles Kings, on Black Friday. In the next game, they fell short against the Chicago Blackhawks, but bounced back with a win over the St. Louis Blues. The Ducks will play three games at home before hitting the road for five in a visit to the Northeastern United States.
Both members of the goaltending tandem, Lukas Dostal and Petr Mrazek, are out with injury–where does that leave the Ducks? While the young forwards are still performing extremely well, goaltending is a big piece of the puzzle. Let’s take a look at the situation for Anaheim.
Dostal and Mrazek Face Injuries
Dostal, the Ducks’ primary goaltender, faced an upper-body injury last week and is expected to be out for two to three weeks. He was placed on injured reserve. This is a huge loss for the Ducks, as “the DostWall” was one of the key components to their success. Before his injury, he had an 11-5-1 record and a .904 save percentage (SV%). He was holding down the fort, so to speak, with Mrazek being a reliable backup option.
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Mrazek was the obvious choice for a starter when Dostal went down, as he had a 3-3-0 record and some big saves in critical moments. The team recalled Ville Husso from the San Diego Gulls to serve as backup. However, as fate would have it, Mrazek suffered a lower-body injury in his game against the Blackhawks. He is listed as day-to-day, which is hopeful, but the Ducks are missing their main goalie tandem.
Husso and Buteyets Take Over
This makes Husso, for the time being, the primary goaltender. Husso has played at both the NHL and American Hockey League (AHL) levels. He boasts a 71-46-19 record, seven shutouts, and a .901 SV% in 145 NHL games. In the AHL, he is 72-64-19, has a remarkable 18 shutouts, and a .909 SV% in 165 games. He is a solid choice for starter with Dostal and Mrazek out.
Husso has to have a backup goaltender, as well, so the team recalled Vyacheslav Buteyets from the Gulls. Buteyets is just 23, so he does not have as much experience in professional hockey as his counterpart. He has a 5-5-0 record this season with the Gulls and the Tulsa Oilers of the ECHL.
He has experience in the All-Russian Hockey League (VHL), Russia’s second-tier league. With Chelmet Chelyabinsk, he posted a 40-32-6 record with four shutouts and a .923 SV% in 81 career games. Should he be called to action in an NHL game, he will definitely be challenged by the new pace of play and volume of shots.
Leo Carlsson and Others Continue Strong Performances
While the team’s goaltending may not be as strong as usual for a period, fear not–the team’s young forwards are still putting up near-perfect performances night after night. Carlsson is back on a seven-game point streak and looking to make it eight against the Utah Mammoth on Wednesday. He has posted 10 points in those seven games.
Beckett Sennecke, a rookie, is on an eight-game point streak, which ties Ducks’ legend Paul Kariya (1994-95) for the longest run by a Ducks rookie. Should Sennecke notch a goal or assist in Wednesday’s game, he will be the record-holder. Cutter Gauthier has 10 points in his last 10 games, and Mason McTavish is finally picking up speed with a four-game point streak.
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With that level of offense, the Ducks should be just fine, even with their goaltending tandem down and out. The defense will need to step up to help their goalies as they adjust to an NHL level of play. The Ducks face the Mammoth on Wednesday, followed by the Washington Capitals on Friday and the Blackhawks on Sunday before they hit the road.
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