For the first time in the 2025-26 regular season, the Anaheim Ducks were on home ice, welcoming the Pittsburgh Penguins to town. The Ducks (2-1-0) entered the game coming off a 7-6 overtime win over the San Jose Sharks. The Penguins (2-2-0) looked for a bounce-back win after falling to the New York Rangers 6-1. Anaheim ultimately came away with a 4-3 win thanks to a three-point night for Chris Kreider.
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Lukas Dostal made some key saves in his 23-save win between the pipes. Despite allowing four goals and taking the loss, Tristan Jarry was solid for the Penguins.
Game Recap
The opening 20 minutes were full of entertainment and chaos with a few goals sprinkled in. The Penguins had a picture-perfect start, opening the scoring on their first shot just 1:03 into the period thanks to Justin Brazeau’s fourth of the season. A few minutes later, the Ducks had a great opportunity to tie the game with Matt Dumba in the box for holding, but the puck wasn’t favorably bouncing for them.
Rickard Rakell extended the Penguins’ lead at 7:01, with Ryan Shea recording his second assist of the period. The Ducks’ Kreider capitalized on their second power play of the period to bring the game to within one. With time winding down, Cutter Gauthier tied the game at two with his third of the season. With 20 seconds left, the Penguins nearly regained their lead, but the crossbar bailed the Ducks out. Pittsburgh held a 15-7 shot advantage through one period of play.
Anaheim found itself on the power play early in the second period. They generated a ton of chances, but the posts and Jarry turned away every opportunity. Having all the momentum in the period, the Ducks got their first lead of the night. Drew Helleson blasted a shot from the point, and the puck found its way past everyone and into the net. With 2:59 to go in the second, Anthony Mantha scored his first as a Penguin on a strange bounce off the stick of a Ducks’ defender. On their first power play of the game, Sidney Crosby had a wide-open net to regain the Penguins’ lead, but Radko Gudas did a phenomenal job of blocking the shot and clearing it from the goal line.
The third period was tightly played by both clubs. While both teams generated zone time, the defense came through with blocking shots. Through 18 minutes, the teams registered four shots apiece. One mistake was all it took as Parker Wotherspoon shot the puck out of play, giving the Ducks a power play with 1:34 to go. Just six seconds into the power play, Kreider scored his second goal of the game and third point, giving the Ducks a 4-3 win over the Penguins.
Both teams return to action Thursday night (Oct. 16), with puck drop scheduled for 10 PM EST. The Ducks will remain on home ice to face another Eastern Conference team, the Carolina Hurricanes. The Penguins will continue their California road trip 30 miles north to Crypto.com Arena to face the Los Angeles Kings.
