Photo: NHL
By Michael Walters
The Anaheim Ducks finished the season at home against the Los Angeles Kings. John Gibson was in net against Joonas Korpisalo.
Recap
The Ducks opened up the scoring on a goal by Troy Terry. Cam Fowler found Terry streaking down the slot area and he beat Korpisalo glove side for the early 1-0 lead just a few minutes into this game.
The Kings tied the game up late in the period. Anze Kopitar tipped Adrian Kempe‘s point shot down to the ground and then batted the puck into the next. The Ducks challenged to see if it was hit with a high stick and they lost the challenge. The Kings went on a power play as a result, but did not convert. The team were tied 1-1 after the first period.
The Kings took the lead halfway through the second period on the power play. Kempe scored from the right face-off circle in a play that had to be reviewed. It appeared Gibson might have made the save originally, but after the review he didn’t. The puck hit Gibson’s left leg pad and then slid under the net and back out as it was slightly raised off the ice.
Less than a minute later and Ian Moore scored. Frank Vatrano was stripped of the puck at the Anaheim blueline sending Moore and Arvidsson on a 2-0 breakaway. Moore shot low beating Gibson to make it 3-1. The Kings held a two goal advantage after two periods of play.
Max Jones scored just over a minute into the third period to pull Anaheim within one. Kevin Shattenkirk threw the puck at the net from the boards and Jones tipped it from in front of the net.
The Kings answered with another goal from Kempe again on the power play.
With about five minutes to go, Trevor Zegras scored to make it a one goal game again. It a tic-tac-toe fashion Troy Terry passed the puck to Adam Henrique, who then passed it to Zegras at the side of the net for the score.
The Ducks pulled Gibson in the final minutes to try to tie things up, but Kempe scored and earned a hat trick. The Ducks dropped this one 5-3.
Analysis:
The Ducks started this game on a good note, but then the Kings took over especially in the second period. LA outshot Anaheim 14 to 4 in the middle frame and scored twice to make it a 3-1 game. The Ducks tried to rally twice in the third, but each time they scored so did Kempe.
The Ducks were very undisciplined in this game as they were shorthanded a total of eight times. They ended up giving up two power play goals in this one. Anaheim had two power play chances of their own, but could not convert.
The Columbus Blue Jackets won in overtime and the Chicago Blackhawks picked up a point. With the loss the Ducks ended up finishing 32nd in the league and secured the top draft lottery spot. They have about a 25% chance at landing the top pick. They also can finish no lower than 3rd overall.
On a final note, I just want to say thank you to everyone who has supported DucksNPucks this season and in years past. This last season has obviously been a difficult journey and we hope we kept you entertained along the way. We look forward to covering the summer activities and next season! Thank you for everyone’s support we couldn’t do it without you!
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April 14th, 2023
DucksNPucks 