Preview: Ducks Host Flames on Fan Appreciation Night

The Ducks will take the ice at Honda Center tonight for the final time this season, tonight hosting the Calgary Flames on Fan Appreciation Night.

PUCK DROP: 7 P.M. | TV: KCOP-13 | DUCKS STREAM | NHL GAMECENTER | GET TICKETS

Anaheim hits its home finale with points in three of its last four games, looking to build on a 3-1 win over the rival Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday. LA went ahead early in the first period, but Anaheim would claim control early in the third on a pair of goals from Alex Killorn and Trevor Zegras.

"We have a mantra in our practice facility for extraordinary effort," head coach Greg Cronin said. "We play hard all the time. We were a tough team to play against and I think we flirted with that throughout year.

"The last couple games we’ve had the same lineup which was nice and you can see the chemistry that was there. I’m happy for them, they deserve to win more games than we’ve won this year."

With the win, Anaheim's first of the season over LA, the Ducks improved to 26-48-5 with three games still to play.

"It did have like a playoff feel, in terms of the pace to start the game," Killorn said. "I thought our team played great against a really good team...I think our team is kind of finding our way and we want to end the season with a good momentum going for next year."

Killorn scored the decisive goal in the opening minutes of the third period, shaking off a disallowed goal due to an offside review to score again on the next shift. Zegras then delivered the crucial insurance marker with a heady neutral ice steal and subsequent finish off the rush.

"He can play to a higher standard than most guys can offensively, so when he competes away from the puck he just brings his game to a higher
level," Cronin said. "For me, it’s inspiring for his teammates to see, he came back really hard on a backcheck and shut down a play. When he does things naturally well offensively I think it gives guys confidence, and then when he puts the same investment defensively, for him, he becomes a role model and that’s what our goal is with him, is to get him to be a three-zone player and I thought [Tuesday] he was terrific."

It's been a busy week in Anaheim since that Freeway Face-Off victory too, with a new face on the scene and a quite familiar one announcing it's time to move on.

Tonight's game will be the final Honda Center appearance for longtime Ducks winger Jakob Silfverberg, who Thursday announced his intention to retire from the NHL at the end of the season.

"I've been trying to prepare for it as best as I can, but I'm just going to try and enjoy it, have a lot of fun with it, and hopefully we'll have a good game," Silfverberg said. "It's going to be a special night, that's for sure."

Now in his 11th season as a Duck, Silfverberg has helped the club to two Western Conference Finals appearances and ranks in the top-10 all-time in most offensive categories, including goals (fifth), points (seventh), assists (eighth), shorthanded goals (third) and shootout goals (fourth).

"It's been amazing to see the support, even just from people coming asking for autographs at the games and whatnot. They're always positive," Silfverberg said of his final game in front of Ducks fans. "They wish you the best. They hope for things to turn around. There's never any sort of negativity around it. It's more so the other way, trying to push you in the right direction. So to be able to share one last night with them, obviously will be special. They've been great to me, to my family and to this team as a whole. So it will be a special night."

On the flip side though, Silfverberg's linemate Friday night, rookie winger Sam Colangelo, will be making his NHL debut. Colangelo, signed to an entry-level contract Thursday, just completed his senior season at Western Michigan, finishing tied for fifth in the NCAA with a career-best 24 goals in 38 games.

Colangelo also appeared in four games with AHL San Diego on an amateur tryout (ATO), totaling four points and earning his first professional goal.

"It's a dream come true," Colangelo said. "I'm really excited to be here. I can't put into words what this means to me and my family. I'm excited to be here and get this going."

Colangelo skated with Silfverberg and Isac Lundestrom at practice Thursday.

"The only thing I can control is going out and playing my absolute hardest," Colangelo said. "If I do that, I'll be OK. Obviously, it's a big step up from any league. It's the best league in the world. But I'm excited to be here, play as hard as I can for three games and have a good summer coming into training camp."

Meanwhile on the other bench tonight, Calgary will wrap up its three-game California trip after a 4-1 loss last night to LA. The Flames fell behind early on a power-play goal and could not generate much offense in response, finishing with just 23 shots against the defensively strong Kings.

“I don't think we were quite ready for them tonight," defenseman Daniil Miromanov said. "They came out hard and were on top of us early. We weren't really efficient with our transition game and breakouts. They were on top of our sticks and bodies and also, I feel like we were turning over the puck in the grey zones. 

"We've just got to quickly re-group here, learn from our mistakes and we've got to keep going. It's a short turnaround here - back at it tomorrow night in Anaheim - so we've got to learn what we've got to do, keep moving forward and this last little stretch, we've got to really dial it in here."

Calgary sits sixth in the Pacific Division and will miss the postseason for the second straight year.