The Ducks (42-32-6) hit the road for the final two games of the regular season as they travel to Minnesota to take on the Wild (45-24-12).
Puck drop is set for 5 p.m. PT and will air on KCOP-13 and Victory+.
Thanks to the Sharks beating the Predators on Monday, the Ducks clinched a playoff berth for the first time since the 2017-18 season.
This marks the team’s 15th postseason trip all-time and 12th in the last 20 years.
“It’s a great feeling,” head coach Joel Quenneville said. “It’s something we set out to do from the start of the year. We had some ups and downs and some great moments and tough moments, but it made it all worthwhile.”
“It’s been years where we’ve been close, years where we haven’t been close and years where it’s been hard to see the end goal, so it’s been quite the journey, especially, selfishly for me, just being here through it all,” Troy Terry, the team’s longest-tenured player reflected. “It’s a great feeling. I’ve been dying to play in these games and I know some of these other young guys [have too.] We’ve got guys that have won Cups and stuff that are just as excited, too. The energy is great in the room right now. It’s been a lot of work and time that’s been put into this.”
Heading into tonight’s game vs the Wild, the Ducks sit at third in the Pacific Division with 90 points. Vegas currently leads the Pacific with 93 points while Edmonton is sandwiched in between the clubs with 91.
While the Western Conference’s teams have been set, playoff seeding remains to be seen with the conclusion of the regular season at the end of this week. There is still a chance the Ducks can reclaim the top spot in the Pacific and be division champions.
“We’ve still got some options here,” Quenneville added. “So, let’s do it one at a time here and try and get some points.”
“We have two playoff games, that’s how we view it,” Terry said about the final pair of regular season games. “They mean a lot and where we fall into the whole picture. Big, big games for us tonight and moving forward.”
The Wild have clinched a playoff spot but come into this game off a 6-3 loss to the Blues on Monday where they sat numerous players ahead of their postseason push.
