The Ducks will look to build on a 4-1 victory over the Winnipeg Jets two nights ago, led by John Gibson's 33 saves. Mason McTavish and Bo Groulx made their NHL debuts for Anaheim while McTavish became the youngest goal scorer in club history (18 years, 256 days).
The Ducks are giving away a free Hampus Lindgnome tonight to the first 10,000 fans in attendance.
Tickets are on sale now.
Anaheim's special teams units got off to a strong start in the season-opening win, highlighted by two power-play goals. The Ducks scored twice on the power play in a single game just once last season.
"We did a lot of things well that we've talked about in preseason," Adam Henrique said of Anaheim's power-play success. "Shooting pucks first, every time we get an opportunity, and then get that second, third, fourth opportunity. Getting pucks to the net and having bodies there, that's when things really break down on team's penalty kills and the power play can take advantage. I thought we did a good job executing."
Anaheim also killed all five Winnipeg opportunities with the man advantage, led by Gibson's stellar goaltending.
"I thought we kept people away from our goalie so he could see the puck," head coach Dallas Eakins said. "Then, once we settled into it, I thought we had great pressure and great angles. We're really proud of those guys the other night and we expect the same tonight."
Anthony Stolarz will make his season debut in goal for the Duck, with Gibson (lower-body) unavailable after a collision with Winnipeg's Andrew Copp on Wednesday. Stolarz posted a 4-3-0 record with a 2.20 goals against average and .920 save percentage in seven starts for Anaheim last season.
"When he's looking big and square in that net and he keeps the game simple for himself, he plays well," Eakins said. "He's got a lot of confidence and we have great confidence in him. He's a great kid and we're really comfortable with him."
Minnesota visits Anaheim for its season debut tonight. The Wild underwent significant roster turnover since their last visit to Honda Center, headlined by the club's buyout of NHL veterans Ryan Suter and Zach Parise after nine seasons in St. Paul.
Suter, who averaged over 22 minutes of ice-time for the Wild last year, will be replaced by committee as Minnesota signed a quartet of blueliners in the offseason, acquiring Jordie Benn, Alex Goligoski, Jon Merrill, and Dimitry Kulikov. Collectively, the group brings 2,610 games of NHL experience to the Wild's defensive corps.
Minnesota also locked up rising star Kirill Kaprizov to a five-year contract. Kaprizov made his long-awaited NHL debut last season, leading the Wild in points (51) and goals (27). The 2015 fifth-round pick also paced all NHL rookies in goals, points, power-play goals (eight) and shots on goal (157).
