Focus on defensive details after another top player goes down with a last-minute injury? No problem. Battle a game to overtime and pull it out in the shootout? Consider it done.
Do it on the road against the No. 1 team in the league while being outshot 41-17? That’s a different task, but one Lukas Dostal took down in spectacular fashion.
The Czech Olympic netminder showed off his elite play-reading and even-keel demeanor to stop 40 of 41 shots in regulation and overtime and two more attempts in the shootout, as the Ducks took down the league-leading Colorado Avalanche, 2-1, at Ball Arena.
Anaheim has now responded to a nine-game losing skid with five consecutive victories, the longest active win streak in the league and their longest win streak since a seven-game stretch in November. The Ducks are 6-0 in shootouts this season
“It’s important,” Dostál said of the win. “We have a long road trip, so it’s a hell of a start. Obviously, every game there’s some things we can clean up. The guys did a hell of a job tonight, and I’m just so proud of them.”
Mason McTavish was the last man out in warm-ups shooting on Dostal, as he usually does in every single game, but just before puck drop, the team’s current No. 1 center was labelled out with an upper-body injury.
Anaheim is already without its leading scorer and usual No. 1 center Leo Carlsson (out 3-5 weeks following a thigh procedure) and leading assists man Troy Terry, who is on injured reserve but could join the team later on this road trip.
“I don’t know how long (McTavish’s) going to be out,” Quenneville said. “I don’t think it’s too serious, but we’ll know more in a day or so. (The injury occurred) post warm-up. Could have been warm-up too, though. Warm-up could have triggered it.”
The Ducks were forced to rely on their defensive details–and goaltender–again, and while the shot clock was massively in Colorado’s favor, Anaheim was pleased with its play on that half of the puck.
“Obviously, I felt really good today. The guys did a hell of a job in the defense, honestly,” Dostal said. “They allowed me to see pucks. Whenever there was a crossing pass, we know they play like that, so I was just trying to make sure that I’m aware of five guys on the ice that play against me and it worked out well today.”
Anaheim (26-21-3, 55 points) is back into the top three Pacific Division playoff spots for the first time since Jan. 4. The Ducks are five points back of division-leading Vegas, but just two points up on second wild card Seattle (22-18-9, 53 points), which is tied with San Jose (25-21-3, 53 points) and Los Angeles (20-16-13, 53 points).
Anaheim continues its five-game northwestern road trip in Seattle on Friday.
With over 27% of the points scored by Ducks players this season out of the line-up on Wednesday (116 of 423 points) with Carlsson, Terry and McTavish on the shelf, Anaheim was forced into a defensive-focused and offensively opportunistic game by the high-powered Avalanche.
Colorado are by far the league’s leader in goals scored, but the Ducks held them to just one goal for only the fourth time this season.
“We battled. Every shift we’re in there,” Quenneville said. “We’re doing what we have to do, but certainly the mindset of playing like that and coming out with a win is what you’re looking for. There’s always lessons as we go a long.”
Those defensive details and the sensational night from Dostal between the pipes gave Anaheim the runway to pull this out, and for a while, it seemed like all they needed was one.
And the one they got once more came from an unexpected source–Jeffrey Viel.
Radko Gudas stepped up at the Ducks blue line to quickly turnaround a Colorado advance, and Cutter Gauthier took the puck the other way. Gauthier dropped to Viel in open space, who sniped around a screen for a 1-0 lead in the second period.
“We’ve been playing great defensively,” Viel said, “and I think, even on my goal today, I think that starts with a good play by Guds, and we get on the rush. It’s starts in the D zone. We’ve been really good on details, and it’s been paying off.”
In Viel’s 30 games prior to joining the Ducks, he was scoreless in a span that stretched across parts of four seasons. Viel had three career goals, all of which came in the 2021-22 season.
In just three games with Anaheim, Viel has recorded a fight in his rivalry debut and goals in each of the last two games.
“Vibes have been high. It’s been unbelievable,” Viel said. “The guys made me feel welcome right away, and I already feel part of this group. It was a quick turnaround, but it was a quick adjustment too. Really happy. Great group.”
After Colorado’s offense hit a boiling point of pure flummoxed frustration, the Avalanche finally got one through Dostal with just over three minutes remaining, but that was it.
Gauthier nearly netted the game-winner in the final minute, as a shot hit off Scott Wedgewood’s glove and danced towards the goal line before being swept away, and after Mikael Granlund scored to open the shootout, Gauthier put the game away on his shootout-winner.
“It’s a team win, and Dosty played a great game,” Gauthier said, “but I thought a lot of guys played a great game tonight. Obviously, when a team scores late on you, after having the lead (most of the game), it sucks, but you have to do what you can and control what you can control to get the job done.”
Jackson in Olympic Action
The news of the day came first thing Wednesday morning–or a Tuesday night phone call–as Jackson LaCombe was named to Team USA’s 2026 Olympic roster.
The 24-year-old Edina, Minnesota native will skate in his first Olympic games, after only making his senior USA Hockey debut in last summer’s run to first-in-92-years gold medal at the World Championships.
“It always was (a dream),” LaCombe said. “Obviously you watch the Miracle movie. You see just kind of all the teams that played before. Any time you get to represent USA, it’s obviously a dream come true and special, and I’m just really excited.”
LaCombe, who is an injury replacement for Seth Jones of the Florida Panthers, attended USA Hockey’s Olympic orientation camp in August, but when the rosters were announced on Jan. 2, LaCombe had said he didn’t have any contact with anyone from USA Hockey during the season.In fact, LaCombe said that Tuesday night’s phone call from Team USA general manager Bill Guerin was the first he’d heard from any of the American brass since that August camp.
“I was never aware of (being on any emergency lists),” LaCombe said. “I didn’t know.”
The former University of Minnesota Golden Gopher leads all Ducks blue liners in points, assists and time-on-ice and is in the final year of his entry-level contract before his team-record eight-year, $72 million extension kicks in next season.
“I think everybody’s happy for him,” Ducks coach Joel Quenneville said. “He’s been really good in this last little stretch here. Everybody roots for him. He’s a very likable kid, and he’s one of the guys, as well. That’s a big opportunity. He had a little bit of an opportunity last year at the World Championships, and did a nice job.”
Team USA drops the puck on the 2026 Winter Olympics on Feb. 12 in Milan.
Wednesday was also a momentous day for the “Old War Dog”–or he would prefer it be publicized as the “Young War Dog”–as veteran Alex Killorn skated in his 1,000th career NHL game.
In his 14th season in the league, including 11 with Tampa Bay and three with Anaheim, the two-time Stanley Cup champion 36-year-old considers himself fortunate to reach this milestone.“It’s pretty special,” Killorn said at morning skate. “Like, you really don’t plan for playing a thousand games, kind of just try to make the NHL and just the way things have gone and feel really fortunate, honestly, to be in this situation. It’s pretty special, and fortunate for sure.”
Killorn was drafted 77th overall by the Lightning in the third round of the 2007 Draft and amassed 240 goals and 313 assists for the Bolts and Ducks.
His Ducks teammates treated him to a video montage on his career this morning, as well as gifted him a golf trip to Ireland–a bucket list trip for Killorn.
“I mean, I try not to (think back on the career in this moment), but the guys did a little video for me this morning,” Killorn said, “and you see, like, YouTube videos of your your first goal, and, like, how much different you look, even in your face, and how much time has kind of gone by, and obviously, great memories with winning Cups.
“I haven’t really taken it all in just yet. I think once, you know, I get through this game tonight and I think it’ll become more real, but you just try to get to this game, especially throughout the season.”
It’s been a tough season for Killorn with a couple close call wounds around his face–a stick near the eye in Colorado back in November and a puck to the mouth last month. It’s part of why he considered himself fortunate to hit this mark, but he took extra care today.
“Honestly, this morning in a skate, I was steering clear of a couple of teammates and just trying to stay away,” Killorn said. “I was gonna almost bubble wrap myself so I didn’t get a puck to the face or stick to the face, but yeah, this year’s been kind of challenging in that sense, where I’ve had a couple close calls that could have been really bad, and luckily, just, you know, a busted up lip and a couple scars on the face.”
Killorn has also been a key factor in the recent resurgence of the Ducks’ penalty kill, as Anaheim has had to focus in on its defensive details to bust out of a nine-game losing skid and win five straight without its top scorers.“I think Killer gives us a real presence as far as playing the right way,” Quenneville said, “and doing the right things, being a good pro, an old pro. Knows how to prepare himself, and knows what needs to be attended to, knows how it can be and should be addressed. So that experience has played itself out here, particularly that nice little stretch we’re going through.”