The Anaheim Ducks have lost six straight games and 10 of their last 12 contests, but coach Joel Quenneville sees good things on the horizon.
The Ducks will try to snap out of their slump Tuesday when they visit the Philadelphia Flyers.
Anaheim is playing the second half of a back-to-back after falling to the Washington Capitals 7-4 on Monday. The Ducks fell behind 5-1 before dominating most of the final 30 minutes, giving Quenneville reason for hope moving forward.
“We did a lot of good things,” Quenneville said. “This was one of those games where we left some on the table, but it kind of shows when you’re having trouble winning games, eventually games like this give you an indication that you’ve got to get out of this pretty soon.”
For Anaheim, the path to victories needs to start with defense. The team has given up 30 goals during its six-game skid, with Petr Mrazek allowing five goals on 24 shots in Monday’s defeat.
Mrazek was pulled after two periods due to an injury, but Quenneville said following the game: “I don’t think it’s serious.”
Chris Kreider, Alex Killorn, Jacob Trouba and Beckett Sennecke tallied for the Ducks, who scored three straight goals to get within 5-4 before allowing a pair of empty-netters in the final minutes.
“I thought we were playing a little more on our toes, a little more aggressive,” Trouba said of Anaheim’s unsuccessful comeback attempt. “We sustained some O-zone time and we were defending less.”
Philadelphia is back home following a five-game road trip that ended with Saturday’s 5-2 triumph over the Edmonton Oilers. Owen Tippett and Nick Seeler each registered a goal and an assist, while Denver Barkey recorded his first career NHL goal.
The Flyers allowed a breakaway goal by Connor McDavid but generally contained Edmonton’s crop of talented scorers en route to their fourth win in six games.
“You have to be smart out there,” Philadelphia defenseman Travis Sanheim said. “For the most part, I thought we were, and that’s why we ended up on the winning side.”
Of course, it helps to have Dan Vladar between the pipes. The 28-year-old goaltender made 22 saves to set a career high for victories with his 15th of the season.
“It’s tough to go into the game thinking you can play up and down hockey against this team,” Vladar said. “I thought everybody played responsible hockey in here and we just outgrinded them. … I’m grateful for the guys in front of me. I didn’t have much of a workday.”
One of the players that Vladar will have to keep a close eye on Tuesday is Ducks sniper Cutter Gauthier. The former Flyers prospect leads the team with 19 goals, but he only has one over his past nine games.
Trevor Zegras, a former Duck, leads Philadelphia in goals (15) and assists (24). However, he also has been quiet of late, with no goals in his last six contests.
This is the first meeting between the teams this season.
The Flyers have swept the two-game season series in four of the last six years. Philadelphia won the two matchups with Anaheim last season by the combined score of 9-1.
