The Ducks conclude a four-game midwestern road trip tonight with a St. Patrick's Day battle against the St. Louis Blues at Enterprise Center.
PUCK DROP: 4 P.M. | TV: BALLY SPORTS SOCAL | DUCKS STREAM | NHL GAMECENTER
Anaheim visits the Gateway to the West hoping to salvage two standings points from what has so far been a disappointing road trip, consecutive losses to Chicago, Minnesota and Winnipeg. The latest of those defeats was a 6-0 setback to the Jets Friday night in Manitoba, as while still missing several top forwards the Ducks could not crack one of the NHL's stingiest defensive teams.
“It was a tight game for two periods,” head coach Greg Cronin said. “It was like 9-6 for scoring chances. It was close in shots. And the third period, you could feel [the Jets] feeling a little bit more confident. I think they were playing a smart game protecting the lead. Then it’s 3-0 and we don’t have a full lineup, so for us to come back from a 3-0 lead is difficult."
The Ducks trailed 2-0 after two periods and outshot the Jets 11-10 in the middle frame, but two early goals for the home side in the third quickly put the game out of reach.
“There’s really no excuse for giving up the Grade A [chances] that we did in that third period,” forward Troy Terry said. “When I say it’s unacceptable to give those up, it’s mostly to him [John Gibson]. He’s been that guy for us for years now, and he’s our backbone and the team kind of runs through him. It’s kind of unfair to leave him out to dry like that. Even just staying out of the box and stop giving up power plays or clearing out in front of him. I mean, some of these he just has no chance, and it’s really unfair to him.”
The loss, Anaheim's fourth in a row, dropped the club to 23-41-3 on the season and 13-18-2 on the road.
Meanwhile, on the other side tonight, the Blues get set to host the Ducks fresh off a dramatic shootout win last night over the division rival Wild. St. Louis shook off a blown two-goal lead to earn the extra standings point, earning its third straight win and pulling within one point of the Wild amidst the highly competitive Western Conference Wild Card race.
"This time of year, stuff like that happens," Blues captain Brayden Schenn told NHL.com's Lou Korac. "The magnitude and pressure of games rises in the third period. Some mistakes are going to happen. We were able to, even when it was 2-2, they came at us still pretty hard but we didn’t give them a whole lot. Come out with one point better than them tonight, we’ll definitely take that."
St. Louis also claimed a narrow win in the season's first meeting with Anaheim, a 3-1 victory at Honda Center way back in November. Mason McTavish scored for the Ducks that night, but three early goals by the Blues would prove too much to overcome.
We weren't getting into a rhythm," Cronin said that night. "It was a good road game by them. They were smart. They put it deep and didn't make too many mistakes."
St. Louis (35-29-3, 73 points) sits sixth in the Central Division, four points back of the second and final Wild Card position
