A pair of teams taking different paths toward recent revivals will meet Wednesday night when the Anaheim Ducks host the Nashville Predators.
While the Ducks have leaned into a potent offense to go on a five-game winning streak, the Predators have been riding their defense while building their own run of five consecutive victories.
Anaheim gave signs of what was ahead when it salvaged the final contest of a four-game trip with a 5-4 victory at Philadelphia on Oct. 24. The Ducks returned home, only to lose consecutive games, but scored five goals in one loss and topped that in a wild 7-6 setback to the Buffalo Sabres on Oct. 29.
Anaheim’s winning streak started with a 6-3 comeback victory over the Ottawa Senators on Nov. 1, and the Ducks scored five goals in each of the next four games, including a 5-2 home victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday.
Anaheim is the first NHL team in 38 years to score at least five goals in eight consecutive games.
In their 6-1-1 run over the past 2 1/2 weeks, Anaheim has averaged 5.3 goals per contest. Cutter Gauthier, who has at least one goal in each of the last six games, has 13 goals during an eight-game point streak.
Gauthier, 22, had a hat trick against the Penguins for his third three-goal game over his last five contests. He has six power-play goals during the current winning streak and eight over the last six games.
“I’m on a high right now,” Gauthier said, according to The Orange County Register. “I’m pretty speechless, but I’m very happy we were able to get the win. They fought pretty hard in the third (period), but we were able to keep the streak going.”
Gauthier’s three hat tricks already tied the franchise record for most in a season.
“He’s got the magic touch. He scores big goals at big times,” Ducks coach Joel Quenneville said. “He’s got some deceptiveness with his release. Guys are getting him the puck in some good areas; he finds it in some interesting places. But, yeah, he’s hotter than a firecracker.”
The Predators will play their second game in two nights in Southern California after posting a 3-0 victory over the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday.
During its five-game winning streak, Nashville has allowed an average of 1.6 goals per game.
On Tuesday, Juuse Saros made 30 saves in his first shutout in two seasons and the 28th of his career. Filip Forsberg scored two goals for his second multi-goal game over his last six contests, and Nils Hoglander had two assists.
The Predators’ stars have led the way, with Steven Stamkos entering Tuesday’s game on a run of six goals and nine points over the eight games prior to the opener of a five-game trip.
“Confidence in any aspect in life is something that you strive for,” Stamkos said, according to The Tennessean. “It’s hard to get and easy to lose. When you have it, you just try to keep that snowball rolling. It’s contagious; you can tell in the (locker) room.”
The Predators went 0-for-4 on the power play Tuesday but still have nine power-play goals over their last eight games.