Ducks Fall Short To The Kings

Photo: NHL

By Michael Walters

The Anaheim Ducks continued their homestand against the Los Angeles Kings. John Gibson was in net against Erik Portillo, who made his NHL debut. Anaheim went with the same lineup they had against Seattle on Wednesday.

Recap

The Ducks battled to a scoreless tie in the opening period. Both teams had a power play chance, but neither team converted.

Anaheim got the first goal of the game in the opening moments of the second period. Ryan Strome got to a rebound at the side of the net and scored with Portillo already down on the ice after the initial shot.

Los Angeles tied things up just over halfway through the period. Alex Turcotte beat Gibson high after a neutral zone turnover by the Ducks. Both teams had a power play chance and neither could cash in. The teams were tied 1-1 after two periods.

Alex Laferriere scored early in the third period to make it 2-1. He was able to get to the rebound and scored despite Radko Gudas’ efforts to stop him.

The Ducks got a power play a few minutes later, but couldn’t get the tying goal. In the final minutes of the game Anaheim pulled Gibson for the extra attacker, but couldn’t tie things up. The Ducks ended up losing 2-1.

Analysis:

This was another game the Ducks could have won. Anaheim outshot Los Angeles in every single period and had a 31 to 18 advantage for the contest. The Ducks created quality scoring chances throughout the game and the power play, but only had one goal to show for it when it was all said and done.

Anaheim did an excellent job blocking shots with 20 in this game. The Ducks had 10 turnovers and one of them lead to the eventual game-wining goal for the Kings. This game could have gone to overtime if that turnover wasn’t committed.

Gibson still looked stellar, but was handed his first regulation loss on the season. He was 4-0-1 in his previous 5 starts.

What’s Next?

The Ducks host the Ottawa Senators on Sunday at 5PM.

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November 29th, 2024