Ducks at Panthers
The Anaheim Ducks try to avoid matching their longest losing streak in nearly three months when they continue their five-game road trip against the Florida Panthers on Tuesday. The Ducks, who trail Nashville by one point in the race for the top spot in the Western Conference, haven't dropped three in a row since Nov. 15-18. Starting netminder Frederik Andersen exited Sunday's 5-3 loss to Tampa Bay when the goal cage fell on him and is listed as day-to-day.
The Panthers were 20 minutes from pushing their winning streak to a season high-tying three games before giving up a pair of third-period goals in an eventual 3-2 shootout loss to Nashville on Sunday. "To come out of there with only one point leading 2-0 and giving up goals like that is disappointing," Florida coach Gerard Gallant said. The Panthers trail Boston by six points - with two games in hand - for the final postseason slot in the East.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, Prime Ticket (Anaheim), FSN Florida
ABOUT THE DUCKS (34-12-7): Corey Perry, who scored four times and collected a pair of assists in four games, was named the NHL's Second Star of the Week on Monday. Perry extended his point streak to five Sunday with an assist on the 200th career goal by captain Ryan Getzlaf, who returned to the lineup after missing the previous two games with a lower-body injury. Andersen, who is second to Nashville's Pekka Rinne with 29 wins, did not practice Monday along with defenseman Hampus Lindholm, who suffered a lower-body injury in Sunday's setback.
ABOUT THE PANTHERS (23-17-11): Florida's struggles while short-handed proved pivotal in Sunday's loss, with both of the Predators' goals coming with the man advantage to mark the fifth straight game in which the Panthers have allowed a power-play tally. "We just couldn't close it and it's frustrating right now," said forward Tomas Fleischmann, who scored his sixth goal of the season. "Penalties happen but we should kill it." Defenseman Aaron Ekblad scored his eighth goal and leads all first-year defensemen with 30 points.
OVERTIME
1. Perry has five goals and six assists in nine games versus Florida.
2. F Nick Bjugstad's career-high four points lifted the Panthers to their most lopsided victory of the season with a 6-2 rout at Anaheim on Nov. 16.
3. Andersen has lost both career starts to the Panthers while backup Ilya Bryzgalov is 5-2-2 against them.