The Anaheim Ducks have been one of the NHL’s early surprises.
Meanwhile, the New Jersey Devils appear back on track following their first rough patch.
The Ducks, who have won four of their last five games, aim for a third consecutive victory with New Jersey in town on Sunday.
Anaheim hasn’t made the playoffs since 2018, which was also the last time the club managed to register more than 80 points in a season. However, under new coach Joel Quenneville, the Ducks are off to a 6-3-1 start.
Following a 3-1-1 road trip, Anaheim returned home Friday and rolled to a 5-2 victory over Detroit. Troy Terry had two goals with an assist and Leo Carlsson added a goal and three helpers for the Ducks, who have scored five or more goals four times already this season.
“We’ve got a lot of smart hockey players,” Terry, who’s posted 10 of his 13 points (five goals, eight assists) in the last six games, told NHL.com.
“We’re just learning when to be aggressive, when teams are maybe in tough spots, and when to push.”
In his third NHL season, Carlsson leads the Ducks with 15 points (five goals, 10 assists), including nine in the last five contests.
“He’s been a ‘wow’ factor,” Quenneville said of Carlsson, who totaled 74 points (32 goals, 42 assists) in 131 games during his first two seasons.
“He brings speed through the middle of the ice, and a lot of times he has possession of the puck, and he can back (the defense) off and loosen up coverage and open things up for his wingers.”
Anaheim’s Lukas Dostal is 4-3-1 with a 2.74 goals-against average in eight starts. Backup Petr Mrazek has won his two starts despite allowing 11 goals.
The Ducks have won eight of their last 10 home meetings with the Devils.
New Jersey lost its season opener at Carolina, then won eight in a row before allowing a combined 13 goals to drop the first two — at Colorado and San Jose — of this four-game western trip. However, the Devils got back on track Saturday with a 4-1 victory at Los Angeles.
Dawson Mercer scored a pair of short-handed goals and Nico Hischier also tallied for the Devils, who rank among the NHL leaders with 45 goals. Mercer has recorded five of his eight goals in the last three contests.
Fresh off signing a two-year, $12 million contract extension, the Devils’ Jacob Markstrom made 43 saves on Saturday. It was a key bounce back for Markstrom (4.18 goals-against average) after he yielded eight goals against the Avalanche on Tuesday.
Markstrom could give way to teammate Jake Allen in this back-to-back scenario. Allen, who sports a 2.39 GAA, is coming off his first loss in seven starts this season in Thursday’s 5-2 defeat at San Jose.
Both Allen and Markstrom are 35 and have become natural leaders for the Devils.
“We need to set an example,” Allen told the Devils’ official website. “A lot of our best players are still our youthful players, so there is a lot we can instill off the ice, too.”
Terry has six goals and five assists in nine career games versus New Jersey.
–Field Level Media
