Ducks Face Rematch with Minnesota in Matinee Clash at Xcel Energy Center

There was a lot to like about Anaheim’s opener of a two-game set with the Minnesota Wild that the Ducks can take with them into the rematch this afternoon. Everything, that is, but the final result. 

The Ducks hung tough with a Wild team that hadn’t lost at home in the past nine games and is 19-10-1 overall. Troy Terry’s second period breakaway goal gave him points in four straight games and provided Anaheim a brief lead, but when the Wild’s Nick Bjugstad put Minnesota in front 2-1 early in the third, the Ducks never did get the equalizer. A Minnesota penalty with just over two minutes left and a pulled Ryan Miller set up a 6-on-4 that the Ducks couldn’t capitalize on, and in fact they didn’t get off a shot. 

“As the game tightens or you need a goal or keep one out of your net, there’s these guys across all leagues, they find a way to get it done,” Ducks coach Dallas Eakins said. “That’s something where we have some guys who need to get that back and some guys who are learning how to do that.”

It was the 21st one-goal game for the Ducks, who are 7-8-6 in them. Still, Eakins was complimentary of another solid Terry performance after a “sluggish start” to his season. “He is playing very, very well,” Eakins said. “As the game went on, I thought he was going to be that guy. He was playing at a really, really high level.”

The line of Terry with fellow youngster Trevor Zegras and veteran center Adam Henrique continues to be a very dangerous combo creating an abundance of scoring chances. 

“I thought we played hard that whole game,” Terry said of the loss. “There are games in a season like this. Those nights happen where you feel like you have a good game and you don’t win. That was the type of game. It (stinks) to lose, but we know if we play like that every night we have a good chance moving forward.”

Another positive for the Ducks was the return of veteran Josh Manson, part of the reason Anaheim held Minnesota to just 23 shots on goal. “Overall, I think we played a really solid game tonight to build off,” Manson said. “I think we’ve got to stay positive after this one. There’s some games you want to learn from and maybe you hang your head a little bit. But this is one I think we have to stay up and go forward to the next one.”

The Ducks hope they can take that positivity into today’s rare weekday matinee in St. Paul with a 2:30 p.m. PT puck drop. The game is still expected to be played as scheduled, despite the fact that yesterday’s practice at Xcel Energy Center was cancelled due to a Ducks player entering the league’s COVID-19 protocols. 

Today marks Anaheim’s first of three day games this season, and for what it’s worth, the Ducks have a 21-14-2 record in day games dating to the start of the 2013-14 season. 

It’s the sixth of eight meetings between Anaheim and Minnesota this season, with the Wild holding a 4-1-0 edge so far.