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The Anaheim Ducks dropped both games of their back-to-back set, losing 4-1 to the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday, followed by another 4-1 loss to the Minnesota Wild last night.
Against Los Angeles on Wednesday, the Ducks had put together a pretty strong first period, outplaying the Kings for much of the frame and generating the better shots for the most part. They may have let their foot off the gas near the end, but still, it was a solid opening period.
Things went downhill from there, though, as Anaheim took some penalties and then couldn’t really keep up in the second frame. About seven minutes into the period, Drew Doughty beat Lukas Dostal with a slap shot on a power play, opening the scoring for the Kings. Despite being outplayed, the Ducks did manage to respond on a power play of their own, with Frank Vatrano burying a rebound in front to tie the game. However, Alex Iafallo managed to put the Kings back ahead with under 30 seconds to go in the period off a tap-in to put Los Angeles back ahead, after the Ducks were outshot 16-5 in the period.
Anaheim didn’t fare much better after that, being outplayed through the first half of the frame, first surrendering a goal to Viktor Arvidsson early on. Then a little later, nobody could take Kevin Fiala off the puck on an individual rush and he managed to get all the way to the net, before beating Dostal. The Kings took a 4-1 win from there.
Essentially, after the first period, the Ducks struggled to keep up against the Kings. They generated 14 shots over the back 40 minutes combined and really, if Dostal hadn’t been on his game, it could’ve been worse.
Then against Minnesota last night, the Ducks really didn’t get much going at all through the first half of the opening frame, spending a lot of it in their own end. They did have two great chances off a rush later in the period though, with Trevor Zegras hitting a post, before Ryan Strome was denied on the rebound off a great save by Marc-Andre Fleury. That was basically it in terms of offense though and while the Ducks got to intermission with the game still scoreless, they were being outshot and didn’t get much going at all.
Anaheim did start to get their chances in the second period though and about a quarter of the way through the frame, Mason McTavish picked off a pass in the defensive zone while the sides were 4-on-4 and went down ice on a breakaway, beating Fleury five-hole. The Ducks actually ended up putting together a better second frame for the most part, outshooting Minnesota for a lot of the period. With about four minutes to go though, Connor Dewar just spun and threw the puck on net from the wall, which found its way in off Nathan Beaulieu in front. Anaheim took some penalties afterwards and ended up facing a lot of shots on goal in the final stretch of the period, but the game remained tied through 40 minutes.
However, the Ducks completely fell off in the final frame. They gave up a goal off a turnover about five minutes into the period, as Matthew Boldy put a shot on net and Lukas Dostal couldn’t catch it cleanly, getting behind him and in. Anaheim got into more penalty trouble from there, and a little later, Joel Eriksson Ek tipped in a point shot from Calen Addison on a power play, making it a two-goal game. The Ducks were outshot 19-6 in the frame and Ryan Hartman added an empty netter with under two minutes to go, as Anaheim fell 4-1 once again.
It’s a pretty tough pair of losses, especially following the two wins in a row on the road.
Over the two 4-1 losses, the Ducks were outshot by a huge 83-47 margin. If you want to include the win against Edmonton in that as well, that brings it to a 132-64 over their last three games, an average of 44-21 per game.
Anaheim just can’t get anything going offensively and they’re spending an awful lot of time without the puck. Taking as many penalties as they have been certainly doesn’t help one bit, but it’s not like they’re controlling the play often at even strength either.
The only bright spot, really, has been Lukas Dostal. Other than the relief appearance against Toronto, he’s been really consistent for the Ducks through six games. The winning goal last night may have been weak but at the same time, the Ducks weren’t generating enough offense that it really mattered.
In smaller news: the Ducks were also part of three-team trade earlier in the week, acquiring Michael Del Zotto from the Florida Panthers, while sending Danny O’Regan to the Detroit Red Wings. It’s a pretty minor move and the Ducks shouldn’t really be using Del Zotto, but it’s at least worth noting.
Another interesting update was that Brendan Guhle has retired from hockey at just 25 years old. He came to the Ducks as a key piece from the Buffalo Sabres in the Brandon Montour trade and spent parts of four seasons with the organization.
The Ducks will play their last game before the break tomorrow, when they host the Calgary Flames.
OTHER ARTICLES FROM DECEMBER
Ducks shut out by Stars for fourth straight loss
Ducks fall to Wild in shootout for fifth straight loss
Ducks blow lead against Jets, lose sixth straight game to end road trip
Ducks snap six-game losing streak with overtime win against Hurricanes
Ducks suffer blowout loss at home against Sharks
Ducks shut out by both Senators and Maple Leafs in back-to-back set
Ducks find some success on road trip with back-to-back wins 
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