Wins at Honda Center have been all too few and far between in the condensed 2020-21 campaign, and last night's 2-1 setback to LA was one of the more frustrating ones for Anaheim. The Ducks outplayed the Kings for most of the night and held a one-goal lead from the time Haydn Fleury scored his first with the team just 5:37 into the game. Unfortunately, Anaheim never did get a second goal, and the Kings ultimately got even on a Lias Andersson goal with just over five minutes left.
With the game seemingly headed to overtime, Anze Kopitar tucked in a backhand while tumbling to the ice to give LA a 2-1 lead that held up to the finish. Ducks goalie John Gibson was having a strong night, but his team couldn't get anything last LA's Jonathan Quick to pad the lead.
"Your goaltending is going to have to stand tall on nights where you're just not generating anything, but on a night like tonight, we should've had run support," Ducks coach Eakins said. "You're rolling that third period, and it would be way better to be up by two or three than hanging on by one."
The Ducks generated a lot of chances, notably on four power plays, but couldn't manage to find the net other than Fleury's early tally.
"We've talked about it ad nauseum this year," Anaheim coach Dallas Eakins said. "There's been nights where we've lacked chances, and there's been nights like tonight where we have a ton of them."
The Ducks turn right around and face the Kings again, the fourth time in six days the two teams have faced off. The Ducks have won just one of those so far, a 3-2 comeback victory Wednesday night at Staples Center.
Ryan Miller, who
announced Thursday he will retire after the season
, is expected to get the start in net tonight in what will likely be his last NHL game.
Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf sat out last night's game for rest purposes, and defenseman Josh Manson also was held out while recover from the injury he suffered in a fight April 20 vs. LA. Their statuses for tonight remain game-time decisions.
Tonight's home finale is also Fan Appreciation Night, where fans (limited capacity of approximately 1,700) will be eligible to win a variety of prizes throughout the evening chosen at random. Plus four finalists, from an enter to win promotion during the season, will have a chance to win a redesigned Honda Ridgeline, courtesy of Honda. Continuing a Ducks tradition, a group of fans will also be selected for "jersey off their backs" in a new format. Fans will be chosen at random and announced in bowl throughout the evening to receive a "jersey off their back."
The Ducks will also award random fans autographed items and more by responding to the Ducks Twitter account (
