Ducks at Maple Leafs
After failing to clinch a playoff berth versus one struggling team, the Anaheim Ducks will try their luck against another one when they visit the NHL-worst Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night. Anaheim trails Pacific Division-best Los Angeles by four points and leads third-place San Jose by one with a game in hand on each.
After splitting the first two contests of their five-game Canadian road trip, the Ducks brace for an opponent that has tormented them of late. Toronto has won seven of the past eight meetings between the teams, including a 4-0 victory at Anaheim on Jan. 6. "We've been playing a lot of good hockey over the last few months and we've just got to find a way to get back to there in Toronto," Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf said. The Maple Leafs are in one of their better stretches of the season, winning two straight and four of five.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET; Prime Ticket, FSN West2 (Anaheim), Sportsnet Ontario (Toronto), NHL-TV
ABOUT THE DUCKS (40-23-9): Corey Perry netted a milestone tally in Tuesday's 4-3 loss at Montreal, reaching 30 goals for the third consecutive season and the sixth time overall to tie Paul Kariya for the most 30-goal campaigns in franchise history. “It is tough,” Perry said of hitting 30 goals. “You look around the league, there’s not a lot of guys. There’s probably a handful each year. ... Each year, it’s getting tougher and tougher." Perry has enjoyed his share of success against the Maple Leafs with seven goals and 11 assists in nine games.
ABOUT THE MAPLE LEAFS (26-35-11): Toronto rookie William Nylander, the No. 8 overall pick in the 2014 draft, is making an impression after scoring in back-to-back games and amassing five points in that span. "If you get on a roll and start scoring in this league you start to become more confident, more poised with the puck and really start to not doubt yourself and not doubt that scoring touch," center Nazem Kadri said. "He's got that. He's gifted in that sense." Tyler Bozak, out since Feb. 6 due to a concussion, is expected to rejoin the lineup.
OVERTIME
1. Ducks F Jakob Silfverberg scored twice Tuesday to give him six goals in the past five games.
2. Toronto has failed on its last 18 power-play chances while Anaheim has killed off 21 consecutive penalties over the past eight games.
3. Ducks F Shawn Horcoff is poised to play in his 1,000th game on Thursday.