Chris Kreider scored two goals, including the go-ahead tally on the power play with 1:27 remaining, as the Anaheim Ducks erased an early two-score deficit for a 4-3 victory over the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday.
Kreider finished with three points as the Ducks won their home opener for the 10th consecutive season. Drew Helleson and Cutter Gauthier also scored goals, Leo Carlsson had two assists, and Lukas Dostal made 24 saves.
Justin Brazeau, Rickard Rakell and Anthony Mantha scored for the Penguins, who have dropped consecutive games after winning their first two of the season. Sidney Crosby and Ryan Shea each had two assists and Tristan Jarry made 17 saves for Pittsburgh.
The Ducks got the game-winner from Kreider at the edge of the left circle off a feed from Troy Terry. The goal came seven seconds into a power play after the Penguins’ Parker Wotherspoon was called for delay of game after flipping the puck over the glass.
Kreider has four goals on the season, his first in Anaheim after he was acquired in a trade with the New York Rangers in June.
The Penguins took a 2-0 lead just over seven minutes into the game. Brazeau scored Pittsburgh’s first goal a mere 1:03 into the game when he tipped in a blast from the point by Shea.
Rakell made 2-0 at 7:01 against his former team when he also tipped in a point shot by Shea.
The Ducks started their comeback at 9:42 of the first period when Kreider scored on the power play from the edge of the crease after a feed from Carlsson.
Gauthier tied the score with 35 seconds remaining in the opening period when he ripped a slap shot from inside the right circle.
The Ducks took a 3-2 lead at 9:48 of the second period when Helleson scored on a slap shot from the right point.
The Penguins came back to tie it 3-3 at 17:01 of the second period when Mantha’s shot broke the stick of Ducks defenseman Jacob Trouba and the puck tumbled past Dostal.
The crowd of 17,622 was the largest ever at a Ducks home game.
–Field Level Media
