Canucks at Ducks
With their season-opening string of victories now a thing of the past, the Vancouver Canucks look to keep alive their point streak when they visit the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday. Vancouver kicked off 2016-17 with four consecutive one-goal triumphs at home, including two in overtime and one in a shootout, before dropping a 4-3 decision in the bonus format Saturday at Los Angeles.
The Canucks were fortunate to earn the one point as they rallied from a 3-0 deficit, with defenseman Alex Edler scoring the tying goal with 35 seconds remaining in the third period. Anaheim will be playing its home opener after beginning the campaign with a five-game road trip that concluded Thursday with its first win — a 3-2 triumph in Philadelphia. Ryan Garbutt snapped a tie with 8 1/2 minutes left in the third session as the Ducks overcame seven short-handed situations for the second consecutive contest. Sunday's matchup begins a stretch of eight straight games played in California for Anaheim that includes visits to San Jose and Los Angeles.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, Sportsnet (Vancouver), Prime Ticket (Anaheim)
ABOUT THE CANUCKS (4-0-1): Vancouver could be without Derek Dorsett for a while as the right wing exited Saturday's game in the second period with a shoulder injury sustained on a hit by Kings defenseman Brayden McNabb. The 29-year-old Dorsett has recorded one assist and seven penalty minutes — five of which were collected in a first-period fight with Kyle Clifford on Saturday. Captain Henrik Sedin and Markus Granlund scored against Los Angeles to tie Daniel Sedin and Bo Horvat for the team lead in goals with two.
ABOUT THE DUCKS (1-3-1): Anaheim shook up its roster a bit Saturday, recalling defenseman Shea Theodore and centers Michael Sgarbossa and Joseph Cramarossa from San Diego and assigning blue-liner Jacob Larsson, left wing Mason Raymond and right wing Nick Sorensen to the American Hockey League club. Theodore and Sgarbossa made their NHL debuts last season while Cramarossa — a third-round pick in the 2011 draft — has yet to do so. Only four players have recorded at least three points for the Ducks, two of which are defensemen — Cam Fowler (four) and Sami Vatanen (three).
OVERTIME
1. The Ducks are tied with Florida for 24th in the league on the power play, converting only two of their 18 opportunities for an 11.1 percent success rate.
2. Vancouver's Brandon Sutter and Anaheim captain Ryan Getzlaf lead their respective teams in both assists (four) and points (five).
3. Anaheim has been short-handed 25 times — second only to Calgary (31).