Trevor Zegras’ two goals aren’t enough to rescue Ducks from another loss
Michael Rasmussen scored the go-ahead goal with 1:07 remaining and the Detroit Red Wings extended their winning streak to three games with a 3-2 victory Sunday over the Ducks.
Joe Veleno and Dylan Larkin also scored and Alex Lyon made 29 saves as the Red Wings completed a successful three-game California road trip.
The three victories to start January match Detroit’s final 13 games of December.
“I feel like we felt a little sorry for ourselves a little bit there before Christmas with the schedule and injuries,” Larkin said. “It’s just managing the ups and downs of a long season and we have the three big wins. ... We have a great feeling in here and guys are bought into what we want to do before the All-Star break.”
Rasmussen’s game-winner, his ninth goal of the season, came when he redirected the puck off his left skate and into the Ducks’ goal off a pass from Moritz Seider. The play was reviewed with the goal allowed after no kicking motion was detected.
Mason McTavish scores for the Ducks, who lose to the Winnipeg Jets 3-1 and fall to 1-5-1 through their last seven games.
“Just trying to build a wall there and get some sort of a piece on it,” Rasmussen said. “Obviously a great pass so I just tried to redirect it and get it in.”
Trevor Zegras scored two goals for the Ducks and Lukas Dostal made 25 saves. Troy Terry had an assist for Anaheim after missing the previous three games with an upper-body injury.
Anaheim went 1-6-1 on a season-long eight-game homestand.
The Ducks looked set to finish the homestand on a high note when they scored 20 seconds into the game. Terry fired a shot into traffic and Zegras deflected the puck toward the ice and into the goal after it took an indirect bounce past Lyon.
The Red Wings tied it at 11:10 of the first period while on the power play when Larkin scored from the slot off a pass from David Perron for his 14th of the season.
Detroit grabbed a 2-1 lead at 2:20 of the second period when Veleno scored on a wrap-around that he put up against Dostal’s pad and just across the line at the right post. Veleno’s eighth of the season was confirmed on replay.
Zegras tied it at 3:55 of the third period when he took a cross-ice pass from Cam Fowler near the edge of the right circle and ripped a shot into the top right corner of the goal for his fourth of the season. With the assist, Fowler tied Steve Rucchin for fifth most points in Ducks history (432).
“I thought we did a pretty good job,” Zegras said. “We wanted to work it behind the net, get the cycles going and find guys in that slot area. I feel like we could’ve had a couple more for sure but their goalie played well. So, credit to him.”
The Ducks survived a Red Wings power play with just under four minutes remaining before giving up the go-ahead goal with the teams at full strength.
“It was a huge trip for us,” Larkin said. “We left Detroit feeling like we played a couple of good hockey games and the results were coming. They came on this trip and we played well. We kind of found the mojo we had when we were healthy and were getting great goaltending.”
Up next for the Ducks: At Nashville on Tuesday
