McDavid got a glimpse of how tenaciously LaCombe defends a 2-on-1 late in the second period of Game 3 on Friday night. With the score tied 3-3, McDavid brought the puck down the right side with linemate Zach Hyman to his left and LaCombe in the middle.
LaCombe sprawled on his belly to block the cross-ice pass, so McDavid held the puck a second longer until he skated past LaCombe. McDavid then tried to slide the puck to Hyman at the back door, but LaCombe blindly swung his stick below his feet while still flat on the ice and redirected the puck out of trouble.
"I was pretty lucky, to be honest," LaCombe said following a team meeting on Saturday morning. "You've got to be careful on those plays. You never know if it can bounce off your stick and go in."
LaCombe used the word "lucky" the night before too, when he described the 190-foot goal he scored into an empty net with 1:33 left, sealing the 7-4 victory.
Ducks coach Joel Quenneville had another description of LaCombe's play in Game 3.
"Oh my God, was he good tonight?" Quenneville said afterward. "He was special tonight. Just the play and the poise and the patience that he had. The goal on the empty net just kind of sums up the night that he did have the puck a lot. ... He was definitely a factor."
LaCombe was a late addition for Team USA at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, replacing injured Seth Jones in late January.
He did not appear in any games as the U.S. went on to win gold but took the time to watch others and improve his own game.
"There's always things you have to learn and grow and you see other players around the League and what they can do," LaCombe said. "Even on your own team too, there's always details you can pick up, and there's so many things in my game that I want to improve and work on. So, I don't think there's ever a point where you're a finished product."
LaCombe was picked by Anaheim in the second round (No. 39) of the 2019 NHL Draft, the 12th defenseman selected.
After appearing in two games for Anaheim at the end of the 2022-23 season, he made the team out of training camp the following season and has been a regular ever since.
The Ducks saw his career trajectory and last October rewarded him with an eight-year, $72 million contract that kicks in next season.
Quenneville was asked on Saturday about similarities between former Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Duncan Keith, who won three Stanley Cup championships, two Norris Trophies and a Conn Smythe Trophy while playing for Quenneville.
"I don't want to say who's better at this, this and that, but certainly he'll have the upside that Duncan had at that stage of his career," Quenneville said.
LaCombe's defense partner, Jacob Trouba, compared LaCombe to Josh Morrissey, the Winnipeg Jets' all-time scoring leader for a defenseman.
"He's kind of the guy, early on, that I loved playing with and how he skated and moved the puck and defended, can shoot it," Trouba said of Morrissey. "That's high praise because Josh is a pretty special player as well."
