IRVINE –– When the Ducks last traveled to Philadelphia, they didn’t feel any brotherly love whatsoever. A rabid crowd took over Wells Fargo Center before the Ducks were sent to their team bus smarting from a 6-0 spanking.
Philly will be the second stop on the Ducks’ rapid-fire road swing featuring four games in six nights, beginning Monday in Washington against the Capitals before Tuesday’s visit to the Cradle of Liberty. Thursday will send the Ducks to Raleigh to face the Carolina Hurricanes before wrapping up Saturday in Buffalo against the ascendant Sabres.
The matchup last year, on Jan. 11, highlighted the trade of Cutter Gauthier for Jamie Drysdale and a draft pick. While Gauthier and the Ducks were shut out, Drysdale netted a goal and an assist, much to the delight of the rowdy fans on hand.
But Gauthier turned a corner late in the campaign and this season he leads the Ducks with 19 goals, also contributing 19 assists. Drysdale has upped his game, too: his 18 points through 40 games are just two shy of the 20 he posted in all 70 contests he participated in during 2024-25.
Gauthier said he knew what to expect from the atmosphere in Philly this time. Further, he had adapted the game he played in the NCAA more effectively to the pros over the course of his season and a half in the NHL.
“The college level obviously isn’t as good as the NHL, so you’re not going to be able to get away with things that you are in college in the National Hockey League. It’s the best league in the world, with the best players in it. So, if you don’t adapt, you’re not going to get any better, and you’re not going to see results,” Gauthier said.
“It took me a little while to get things going, understand the league, get comfortable with the guys and play in all these different new rinks. And, you know, the more comfortable I got, the better I performed.”
Adding further intrigue to Tuesday’s matchup is that it will be the first time that the Ducks battle former franchise face Trevor Zegras. Zegras led the team in assists in 2021-22 and then in goals and total scoring the following season, but his past two campaigns were marred by injuries.
That led to an offseason, loss-cutting trade to Philly, where Zegras leads the Flyers in scoring and is producing at an 80-point pace, which would represent a career high.
The Ducks had been the second highest-scoring team in the NHL, but since Dec. 10 they rank in the bottom quarter of the league in goals per game while compiling their second worst record by both points total and percentage (2-7-2; .273).
Beyond his offense, Zegras was missed in the dressing room. Center Mason McTavish was one of several Ducks who were close friends with Zegras and Drysdale.
“Yeah, no, it’s tough, those were my best friends on the team and now they’re both gone. But that’s just part of the game; that can happen. It’s tough and it’s (crappy),” McTavish told RG Media. “But, we’ve got a great group in here and it’s easy to talk to all the guys. They’ve been really awesome, so I’m very grateful for everybody in here.”
In addition to their visit with old chums, they’ll contend with one of hockey’s elder statesmen, Washington captain Alex Ovechkin, who broke Wayne Gretzky’s career goals record last season.
They’ll also face the Hurricanes, who have reached three conference finals since 2019 under Rod Brind’Amour, and the Sabres, who tied Colorado for the NHL’s longest win streak this season with 10 consecutive Ws last month.
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