Ducks Seek Redemption Against Panthers After Road Trip Struggles

ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Anaheim Ducks return to Honda Center tonight to face the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers in the second half of a home-and-home series. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. as the Ducks aim to rebound from a disappointing 1-4-1 road trip that concluded with a 3-0 shutout loss to the Panthers on Saturday.

“I thought the first two periods were hard-fought periods, we just have a hard time scoring goals,” Ducks head coach Greg Cronin said. “Guys are getting chances, we had multiple breakaways again. Once they got up 2-0, they are a Stanley Cup team built around their defensive strength and keeping pucks to the outside, so we didn’t get much going in the third period.”

The loss dropped Anaheim to 18-22-6 on the season, leaving them nine points out of a Western Conference Wild Card spot. Captain Radko Gudas acknowledged the team’s struggles, saying, “[The last few games of the road trip] were close games, and it is just unfortunate we couldn’t score. It was hard mentally, but the guys were battling to the end.”

The Ducks will be without defensively-minded centerman Isac Lundestrom, who suffered a knee-on-knee injury from Florida’s Sam Reinhart during Saturday’s game. Reinhart, who leads the Panthers with 27 goals and 51 points this season, received a five-minute major and game misconduct for the hit but avoided further discipline and will play tonight.

On a positive note, Trevor Zegras, who has been sidelined since early December with a torn meniscus, skated with the team Monday morning and could return to the lineup. Zegras’ presence could provide a much-needed boost to Anaheim’s struggling power play, which has failed to score in its last six games.

Meanwhile, the Panthers (27-17-3) begin a four-game Western road trip, with stops in Los Angeles, San Jose, and Vegas following tonight’s game. Florida sits second in the Atlantic Division and will look to build on Saturday’s shutout victory, where Spencer Knight made 34 saves for his fifth career shutout.

“We have to get the power play going,” Cronin emphasized. “When you get a five-minute major like that and you don’t score, usually it’s a bad omen. We’ve got to get it going. When you get goals on the power play, it leads to confidence at 5-on-5, too.”