ANAHEIM –– Riding their second-longest winning streak of the campaign, the Ducks traveled to face the same opponent that ended their longest, the Colorado Avalanche.
The Ducks have distanced themselves from a nine-game trainwreck, chugging along with four consecutive victories. When they last went to the Mile-High City, they lugged seven straight triumphs in tow, but lost 4-1 on Nov. 7.
In between their two strongest surges of the season, the Ducks had won consecutive games just twice. The Avs, who are favored to win both the Presidents’ Trophy and Stanley Cup, are one of three franchises to piece together a double-digit chain of victories this season.
And they’re the only team to do it twice already.
“[We want to carry over] the momentum that we have and, certainly, the way we want to play, especially against a team that’s as good as anybody in the game, and that has a lot of high-end talent and speed and skill,” Ducks coach Joel Quenneville said. “We’re gonna be tested to see how we can handle that type of competition. We’ve got to be playing the perfect game.”
The Ducks will continue to be undermanned with top center Leo Carlsson on the shelf (thigh surgery) following a period where his injury factored into his precipitous drop in production. Frank Vatrano (broken shoulder) remains unavailable. University of Denver Pioneers star and Denver native Troy Terry (upper-body injury) also sounded doubtful.
“Troy is day-to-day, I’m saying there’s a chance he could play on the trip,” Quenneville said.
The swing will span five games, and after Colorado each of the remaining four will feature intradivisional matchups. The Ducks will visit Seattle before traversing the border for dates in Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver.
Like the Ducks, Seattle is in the thick of two dense races. In the Pacific, four teams are within two points of each other, with the Ducks and San Jose Sharks sitting on 53 in a points tie for third place and the Kraken and Kings hauling 51. In the No. 2 wild-card position, six teams are separated by just four points.
The Flames began their seemingly annual selloff by dealing Rasmus Andersson to the Pacific-topping Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday. They faceplanted out of the starting blocks, losing eight of their first nine games and seven in regulation, though since Nov. 2, they’ve had a respectable .569 points percentage, the fourth best in the division.
Though the Oilers are situated second in the Pacific, they have had difficulty gaining steam this season. While they haven’t lost more than three games in a row, they sat with lowly St. Louis as they entered Tuesday’s action as the only two teams that haven’t won more than two straight games yet this season. That’s despite having two of the top five scorers in the NHL. Leon Draisaitl was fifth in points on Tuesday morning and Connor McDavid was tied with Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon in one of the most intriguing Art Ross Trophy races in recent memory.
Vancouver has continued to sink into an abyss, putting a hefty down payment in losses on the top lottery odds and best shot at phenom Gavin McKenna. The departures via trade of Norris Trophy winner Jack Hughes and, on Monday, winger Kiefer Sherwood, accelerated their descent.
With a broad spectrum of adversaries, the Ducks will continue to focus on their own game.
They nearly shot themselves in the foot Monday against the New York Rangers, allowing two power-play goals and taking a pair of late penalties afterward. Yet their PK came through late and their defensive game has tightened up on the whole.
During their nine-game drought, they allowed five goals per game. During their four-game rebound, they’ve given up just four five-on-five goals and seven tallies overall.
Winger Cutter Gauthier, who scored two goals against New York, said improved discipline and defensive details would be vital during their journey.
“When we play more of the defensive side of the game, a lot of opportunities are given to us, and the more we can keep that going and frustrate teams, it’s going to be better for us,” he said.
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