Avs Rally Past Ducks

Photo: AP

By Michael Walters

The Anaheim Ducks hosted the Colorado Avalanche for the final home game of the season. Lukas Dostal was in net against Scott Wedgewood. Ian Moore made his NHL debut.

Recap

Mason McTavish struck first for Anaheim in the final minutes of the opening period. He had the puck in the left faceoff circle and whipped a shot high over Wedgewood’s shoulder. The Ducks led 1-0 after the first period.

Sam Colangelo made it a 2-0 game just over seven minutes into the second period. He one timed a pass low beating Wedgewood five-hole. The goal came just as time expired on the power play. The Ducks led 2-0 after two periods.

Wyatt Aamodt scored halfway through the third period to get the Avs on the board. He took a shot from the right circle that went in off the skate of Pavel Mintyukov.

A few minutes later Drew Helleson was called for a delay of game penalty and Jack Drury scored on the power play to tie the game at two.

Charlie Coyle then scored with just over two minutes left to give Colorado a 3-2 lead. The Ducks pulled Dostal in the final minutes and Erik Johnson scored in the empty net. The Avs went on to win 4-2.

Analysis:

The Ducks were able to build a 2-0 lead after two periods, but then things fell apart in the third period. The Avs got on the board with about 10 minutes left to go in the game and then followed that up with a power play goal. It looked like the game might have been headed for overtime, but the Avs scored one more time with just over two minutes to go. They added an empty net goal for good measure.

This was a disappointing way to close out the last home game of the season. The Ducks had control of this game until the final 10 minutes. It was bad enough giving up four goals in about 10 minutes of play, but it was also against Colorado’s B team. The Avalanche already secured a playoff spot as the 3rd seed in the Central Division and rested a number of their players in this contest.

Special teams was a factor as Colorado went 1-for-3 on the power play and Anaheim went 0-for-2 though they did score right after time expired on one man advantage. The Ducks were also outshot 24-20 when it as well said and done. Anaheim only posted a CF% 46.39% and FF% of 40.32% during even strength play against Colorado’s B team.

It doesn’t matter what team the opponent puts on the ice, sloppy play is going to come back to haunt you. This was the case in the third period. The Ducks turned over the puck often, went shorthanded twice, didn’t play disciplined, and didn’t have any puck luck either. Anaheim has two more games on the road to close out the season.

What’s Next?

The Ducks face the Wild tomorrow in Minnesota at 5PM.

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April 14th, 2025