Preview: Ducks Open Trip With First Look at Little Caesars Arena

The Ducks (27-19-11, 65 points) begin a four-game road trip this evening against the Detroit Red Wings (22-23-9, 53 points) at Little Caesars Arena (4:30 p.m. PT, TV: Prime Ticket, Radio: 830). With points in three consecutive games (2-0-1), Anaheim also owns points seven of its last nine (5-2-2) and has gone 13-6-3 in its last 22.

Anaheim has found success this season against Atlantic Division foes, earning points in six of the last eight games (5-2-1) since November 15 vs. Boston. This, however, is the first of a two-game season series between the Ducks and Red Wings and the club's first glimpse at Detroit's sparkling new arena. Opened on September 7 with an approximate cost of $862.9 million, Little Caesars Arena is home to the Red Wings and Detroit Pistons. The Red Wings previously played at Joe Louis Arena since 1979.
This is a crucial road trip for the Ducks, who find themselves just one point out of third place in the Pacific Division behind Calgary. A 3-2 shootout loss two nights ago at home against the San Jose Sharks was a game the Ducks could have closed out in regulation, but two unanswered goals by San Jose in the third period eventually forced OT and then a shootout, where Joe Pavelski and Logan Couture scored to give the Sharks an all-important extra point. Divisional games of importance tonight include San Jose hosting Arizona, Calgary at Boston and LA at Carolina.
"It's a key time of the year," said Adam Henrique. "We can either put ourselves in a great spot moving forward for the stretch, or we could go the other way. Our mindset going in is that we need to put points on the board. We know it's a big trip for this team. We know it could be a great trip for us. Just like our last road trip, we want to get off to a good start and start with a huge win tonight."
John Gibson will make his third consecutive start tonight. The 24-year-old netminder is 19-14-6 with a 2.60 goals-against average and .923 save percentage in 42 games this season. In five career games against Detroit, Gibson is 3-2-0 with a 2.28 GAA, .919 SV% and one shutout.
The Ducks own an all-time mark of 26-45-12 against the Red Wings, including a 7-26-8 mark in Detroit. Though road wins in the Motor City have historically been hard to come by for Anaheim, those contests were held at The Joe - long revered as one of the most intimidating buildings to play in. Since the 2013-14 season, the Ducks have gone 6-2-0 against the Red Wings, including a 3-1-0 mark in Detroit. Ryan Getzlaf ranks fifth among active NHL skaters in career scoring against the Red Wings with 40 points (11g/29a) and third in career assists. Getzlaf enters tonight's game riding a five-game scoring streak (six points, 2g/4a) vs. Detroit dating to Oct. 11, 2014.
Detroit enters tonight's contest with a 4-4-2 mark over its last 10, but earned three of four points on its recently completed two-game road trip that included a 5-4 OT victory over the Washington Capitals at Capital One Arena on Sunday. The Wings, who sit eight points out of the second wild card spot, are led in scoring by 21-year-old center Dylan Larkin.
Selected in the first round (15th overall) of the 2014 NHL Draft, Larkin has 42 points (8g/34a) in 54 games this season, just three points shy of his career high set in his 2015-16 rookie campaign. It's been a bounce-back season for Larkin, purely in terms of numbers, as he has already surpassed last season's point total of 32. Anthony Mantha leads the Wings with 19 goals, including two in a wild 7-6 overtime loss against the New York Islanders on Friday. The 6-foot-5, 225-pound forward will forever have the distinction of scoring the first goal at Little Caesars Arena on October 5 vs. Minnesota.
Jimmy Howard will get the start tonight for the Red Wings, according to reports from the team's morning skate. The veteran netminder has a 15-17-6 record, 2.85 GAA and .910 SV% in 40 games this season. The 33-year-old netminder brings a 9-5-2 mark with a 2.25 GAA and .924 SV% in 16 career games against Anaheim.