Ducks Rally, But They Still Lose 3-2

Photo: AP

By Michael Walters

The Anaheim Ducks traveled to Utah for a quick road game. Ville Husso made his Anaheim debut in net. Karel Vejmelka was in net for Utah.

Recap:

Utah scored the opening goal just over halfway through the first period. Jack McBain tipped in a shot by Ian Cole. Utah held a 1-0 advantage after the opening period.

Ryan Strome nearly tied up the game early in the second period. He was able to get around Vejmelka and had a wide open net for an easy tap in goal, but Mikhail Sergachev covered the crease and blocked the shot attempt with his skate.

Alexander Kerfoot then made it a 2-0 lead with just over five minutes left in the middle frame. He beat Husso close on his blocker side.

Alex Killorn got the Ducks on the board about a minute later. He scored from the left circle with a shot between the arm and body of Vejmelka. Anaheim was down 2-1 after two periods.

Sergachev was called for a penalty early in the third period and the Ducks tied the game on the power play. Mason McTavish scored on a one-timer from the right circle.

Utah took the lead about four minutes later. Dylan Guenther scored on the power play.

The Ducks pulled Husso for the extra attacker in the final minutes, but they couldn’t tie the game and lost 3-2.

Analysis:

Anaheim had a rough start being outshot 17-8 in the first period and then 31-15 after the second period. The Ducks got in after 3 AM in the morning and they looked sluggish to start this contest. They were able to battle back to tie things up early in the third, but they still fell short in another must win game.

Husso looked solid in his debut in Anaheim stopping 36 of 39 shots. He didn’t get much offensive support at the start of this contest. Head Coach Greg Cronin did shake up the top two lines swapping Trevor Zegras with Frank Vatrano. Leo Carlsson was centering Vatrano and Killorn. Strome centered Troy Terry and Zegras. It seemed to work as the Ducks were able to get two goals to tie the game, but a late power play goal is what put Utah over the top.

Utah put up 75 total shot attempts at even strength to 57 for Anaheim. Utah had a CF% of 56.82% and a FF% of 60.22%. The special teams were very even. The Ducks scored on one of two power play attempts and Utah scored on one of three of their attempts.

Team Notes/Stats:

The Ducks are 8 points behind both Calgary and Vancouver for the final wild card spot in the Western Conference.

What’s Next?

The Ducks host the Nashville Predators Friday at 7PM.

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March 13th, 2025