Ducks Bounce Back Against The Capitals

Photo: AP

By Michael Walters

The Anaheim Ducks continued their homestand against the Washington Capitals. Ville Husso was in net against Logan Thompson. The Ducks went back to the traditional 12-6 lineup. Mikael Granlund returned from his injury and Ian Moore was a healthy scratch on defense.

Tom Wilson scored just before the halfway point of the first period. Justin Sourdif found Wilson in the slot and he took a quick shot beating Husso on his blocker side.

Cutter Gauthier answered back with a goal just under two minutes to go in the opening period. Beckett Sennecke found Gauthier in the slot and he beat Thompson low for the score.

Washington regained the leader about six minutes into the second period. After the Ducks couldn’t clear the puck out of their zone, Ethan Frank got the puck in close and beat Husso on his glove side.

Ross Johnston answered for Anaheim just 13 seconds later. Radko Gudas took a point shot and Johnston deflected it past Thompson.

The Capitals then took the lead again about a minute later when Aliaksei Protas got to a rebound from a point shot and put it past Husso.

Once again the Ducks answered when Beckett Sennecke scored down low in front. The teams were tied at three after two periods and it remained that way at the end of regulation.

After a scoreless overtime, a shootout would be need to determine a winner. Troy Terry and Mason McTavish both scored to give Anaheim the win. Leo Carlsson appeared to have scored as well, but the goal was overturned.

Analysis:

The Ducks went down 1-0 early in this contest, but answered back immediately. The Capitals went ahead 2-1 and 3-1 in this contest, but each time the Ducks fought back to tie the game. After an exciting, but scoreless, overtime the Ducks pulled out the win scoring twice in the shootout.

There was some controversy at the start of the shootout. Leo Carlsson scored, but the play was immediately reviewed. It appeared he may have pushed the right leg pad of Thompson into the net with the puck. After a lengthy review the goal was taken off the board, but because the officials deemed Carlsson had attempted to shoot the puck twice. The puck already appeared in the net when said attempted second shot occurred. You can watch the replay here and decide for yourself.

Another bit of controversy occurred in the first period. Jacob Trouba crushed Ryan Leonard behind the net and was immediately called for a five-minute penalty. The play was reviewed and the penalty was recalled as Trouba hit Leonard on the shoulder and side initially. The Washington team and fans were not happy as Leonard was injured on the play and had a bloody lip after the hit. After it was all said and done Anaheim ended up with a power play as a result of the melee after the hit when the Capitals players charged Trouba.

The power play used to be a strength for Anaheim, but they went 0-for-5 in this contest. The Ducks have gone scoreless in their last 15 power plays. The Ducks did keep the Caps off the board with their three power play attempts. The penalty kill has been subpar this season operating at 75.8%.

Sennecke continues flying high for Anaheim. He assisted on Gauthier’s score in the first period and then scored with about two minutes left in the second period to tie the game at three. He has been known for his goal scoring ability, but his play making ability as well has been exciting to watch.

Johnston also had himself a night with a goal and an assist. He scored the second goal of the night, using his hands to deflect a puck. He also assisted on Sennecke’s goal. He got to a rebound and made a short pass to Sennecke as he skated toward the net.

Overall a good bounce back win for the Ducks after getting completely smoked on Wednesday night against the Mammoth. Anaheim is still in first place in the Pacific Division, but they still need to find some more consistency with their special teams and defense.

Team Notes/Stats:

The Ducks scored three game-tying goals to earn their 10th comeback win of the season, the second most among all teams behind the Flyers (11).

Beckett Sennecke (28 GP) became the third rookie in Ducks history to record five career multi-point games before his 30th contest, joining Dan Sexton and Paul Kariya (both: 22 GP).

Sennecke leads all rookies in total points with 22. He is tied for the lead in goals scored with eight.

What’s Next?

The Ducks host the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday at 5 PM.

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December 6th, 2025