Kuzmenko has hat trick, sparks Flames past Ducks

ANAHEIM -- Andrei Kuzmenko had a hat trick for the Calgary Flames in a 6-3 victory against the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center on Friday.

"A very good step up for me," the forward said of his second NHL hat trick and first since he was traded from the Vancouver Canucks on Feb. 1 for center Elias Lindholm.

Nazem Kadri had a goal and two assists in his 900th NHL game, and Dustin Wolf made 19 saves for the Flames (36-38-5), who bounced back from a 4-1 loss at the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday to finish 2-1-0 on their California trip.

"There was a lot to like on a back-to-back where we haven't been great this year (1-6-1)," Calgary coach Ryan Huska said. "It was nice to see them respond here tonight."

Sam Colangelo scored in his first NHL game, and Frank Vatrano and Olen Zellweger followed with third-period goals to cut the lead to 4-3. John Gibson made 21 saves in the final home game of the season for the Ducks (26-49-5), who have lost eight of 10 (2-6-2).

"I think the future's bright around here," Anaheim defenseman Cam Fowler said. "So many young players who are ready to take that next step. So I know the fans are all excited about that, just as we are as players, and I hope that carries into next season and we're competing for a playoff spot."

Andrew Mangiapane scored short-handed after he teamed with Yegor Sharangovich to steal the puck in the Anaheim zone, giving the Flames a 1-0 lead at 5:54 of the first period.

Kadri scored from the slot during 4-on-4 play to extend the lead to 2-0 lead at 11:53.

The Flames made it 3-0 at 5:43 of the second period when Kuzmenko pushed a loose puck across the goal line while on a power play. The Ducks challenged for goaltender interference, but the goal was upheld.

Calgary made it 4-0 at 18:28 when Connor Zary scored to the short side with a backhand from in close.

“The first two periods, we were so bad," Ducks coach Greg Cronin said. "It was like you couldn’t find anybody that could harness a change. There was nobody finishing checks, there was nobody ripping shots. Nobody defended well.”

The Ducks responded with three goals in a 4:07 span of the third period to cut it to 4-3.

Colangelo, who signed a two-year entry-level contract Thursday after finishing his senior season at Western Michigan University, got to a loose puck behind Wolf and swept it into the net to make it 4-1 at 2:54.

"It felt incredible," Colangelo said. "I kind of blacked out for a second there. I just tried to get a little [celebration] in and just enjoy it with the teammates."

Trevor Zegras made a backhand pass from behind the net to Vatrano, who scored to the short side from below the left circle to make it 4-2 at 6:13.

Zellweger cut it to 4-3 at 7:01 with a wrist shot from above the right circle that nicked two Calgary players before hitting the net.

"Credit to them, they took over the first 10 minutes of the third period," Kadri said. "We needed to settle everybody down."

Kuzmenko scored his second power-play goal of the game to make it 5-3 at 14:22. He scored again from in close at 17:19 and completed the hat trick to make it a 6-3 final.

"As a group, we just battled," Wolf said. "It got to 4-3 with I think 12 minutes left, and we just had to battle. I tried to make a couple saves when I needed to, and we got a couple more (goals), which certainly helped."

Ducks forward Jakob Silfverberg, who earlier in the week announced his retirement from the NHL at the conclusion of the season, played 15:14 in his final game at Honda Center.

"Pretty emotional," said Silfverberg, who played 11 of his 12 NHL seasons in Anaheim. "Obviously it didn't go as planned. The first two periods we were kind of asleep on our part, but we gave it a good push in the third."

NOTES: The Flames went 2-for-5 on the power play and are 12-for-24 in their past eight games. ... Zegras has six points (one goal, five assists) in his past six games. ... Colangelo, who was chosen in the second round (No. 36) of the 2020 NHL Draft, is the seventh Anaheim player to score his first NHL goal this season, the most in the NHL. Zellweger, Jackson LaCombe, Tristan Luneau, Pavel Mintyukov, Urho Vaakanainen and Leo Carlsson are the others.