With designs on a new winning streak after their six-game surge came to an unceremonious close on Tuesday night, the Ducks will be looking for the first link in a new chain of victories against the visiting Philadelphia Flyers on Friday.
The Ducks beat the Flyers in an earlier meeting, the only one of their six straight victories that did not come by way of a third-period comeback. They also beat the Pittsburgh Penguins during that road trip but have no prospects of a Keystone State sweep since those same Penguins prevailed, 2-0, on Tuesday at Honda Center. A disallowed goal as the buzzer loomed put a gleam in the Ducks’ eyes, but there was no late-game magic this time.
“There’s belief in our team and there’s a no-quit attitude, which is important. But it’s a hard way to live over the course of the season, so we need to figure out a way to get some more goals early, some first-period goals really get that momentum going,” said defenseman Cam Fowler, the senior-most Duck.
In Philadelphia, these two clubs clashed on Oct. 29, when the Ducks put up seven goals on the Flyers. They faced backup goalie Samuel Ersson in that game. Of the Flyers’ five victories, No. 1 goalie Carter Hart had earned four of them. A mid-body injury had kept him out of action since the 10-minute mark of a loss against Buffalo on Nov. 1, but Hart and Philadelphia coach John Tortorella both confirmed to reporters Thursday that he’d be good to go Friday.
For the Ducks, Trevor Zegras was off the ice Thursday for a maintenance day, as were Mason McTavish and Jakob Silfverberg as the forwards dealt with a minor illness. All are expected to play on Friday.
Whether the Ducks ride the hot hand of veteran John Gibson or turn back to October NHL Rookie of the Month Lukáš Dostál, they should have a strong counter for Hart. Dostál has five of the Ducks’ seven wins and only one loss. Gibson has stopped 64 of 67 shots across a statement victory over defending champion Vegas and Tuesday’s unsatisfying loss to Pittsburgh in which Gibson surrendered just one goal while making several jaw-dropping stops.
“He made some huge saves. He made a couple in the second period that were post-to-post saves,” Ducks coach Greg Cronin said. “You’ve got two good goalies like that, you’ve got a chance to win every night.”
While Gibson and his defense combined to give the Ducks every opportunity to keep their stone rolling, they put up a big, mossy zero on the scoreboard Tuesday. Close-range chances were somewhat scarce and follow-up bids were all but nonexistent. They’ve won every game in which they’ve scored three or more goals this season, but offensive consistency has proven largely elusive.
“We went through that earlier in the year, we were playing really well but wouldn’t score, then we got some goals during the streak. Now we’ve got to find a way to get them back,” Cronin said.
The Flyers could present a solid opportunity for the Ducks to find a rhythm offensively despite the return of Hart and oh-so-complete center Sean Couturier. He was also injured against Buffalo but returned to face San Jose on Tuesday. In that game, the Sharks got their first win of the heretofore miserable season, earning the Flyers some ignominious recognition.
Travis Konecny, who leads the Flyers in goals and points alike, tallied twice against the Ducks in last month’s matchup. Former Duck Nicolas Deslauriers provides muscle for the Flyers and could be busy Friday given the Ducks’ offseason acquisition of tough customers Ross Johnston, Radko Gudas and Ilya Lyubushkin. On defense, former junior Duck Cam York has become a regular for Philly, but at 22 he is still very much learning the ins and outs of an NHL blue line.
PHILADELPHIA AT DUCKS
When: Friday, 7 p.m.
Where: Honda Center
How to watch: Bally Sports West
