Ducks at Coyotes
Captain Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry look to build off very productive nights when the Anaheim Ducks visit the Arizona Coyotes on Wednesday. Getzlaf recorded five assists while Perry had a pair of goals as the Ducks turned back Calgary 5-3 on Tuesday night, and 24 hours later they attempt to beat the Coyotes for the first time in three tries this season.
The Ducks, who came within a win of the Stanley Cup final a season ago, have sputtered out of the gate with an offense ranking near the bottom of the league despite the presence of All Stars Perry and Getzlaf. The duo hope the spark will ignite against the Coyotes, who took both early meetings at Anaheim. Defenseman Nicklas Grossmann could return to the lineup for Arizona after missing the last seven games with a lower-body injury. Goalie Mike Smith (lower body), who shut out Anaheim on Oct. 14, also sat out Saturday’s 3-2 loss to Winnipeg and could be available Wednesday.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, Prime Ticket and FSN San Diego (Anaheim), FSN Arizona-Plus
ABOUT THE DUCKS (8-10-4): Goalie Frederik Andersen missed the Calgary game Tuesday with flu-like symptoms and John Gibson got the victory after replacing starter Anton Khudobin. Perry also had an assist and leads the team with 15 points after managing one in the first eight games of the campaign while Getzlaf has 14 after an identical start. Former first-round pick Rickard Rakell has joined Getzlaf and Perry on the top line of late and notched his fourth and fifth goals Tuesday.
ABOUT THE COYOTES (10-9-1): Rookie forward Anthony Duclair is warming up again, posting five points in the last four games, and has scored four of his seven goals against the Ducks. Center Martin Hanzal has two goals in the last three games and boasts a team-high 18 points while rookie Max Domi owns a team-best eight goals — three versus Anaheim. Defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson, who led the team in scoring a season ago, has three goals in the last five contests.
OVERTIME
1. Arizona RW Shane Doan has goals in back-to-back games and is five away from Dale Hawerchuk’s franchise record of 379.
2. Anaheim D Sami Vatanen registered eight points in the last eight games, including two assists Tuesday.
3. The Coyotes recalled C Dustin Jeffrey and sent D Philip Samuelsson and G Louis Domingue to Springfield of the American Hockey League.