Dostál's 45 saves holds off Oilers' charge, secures Ducks win, 3-2

ANAHEIM, Calif. – Even without injured all-world centers Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, the Edmonton Oilers opened up a shooting gallery at Honda Center on Sunday, and despite the increasing ferocity of the barrage, Anaheim Ducks netminder Lukáš Dostál stood up to the task.

Dostál denied 45 shots, including 23 third-period stops, and the Ducks negated six Oilers power plays, as Anaheim held off Edmonton, 3-2, to win the season series over the playoff-bound Oilers.

Dostál posted his NHL-leading fifth 40-save effort.

“Dostál won the game,” Ducks coach Greg Cronin said. “This game is an awkward game because their star players are out and they're fighting for position in the playoffs and I didn't think we had a very good game.

“I think they had more urgency to the way they played. I think they were more precise. They were more aggressive. Like I said, we won the game because our penalty kill was led by our goalie, who was the best player on the night.”

Cutter Gauthier netted two goals in the second period, and Mason McTavish hit the 50-point mark for the first time with a breakaway marker in the third period, which held up as the game-winner.

Gauthier is fourth in rookie goals and points, and McTavish is the fifth youngest Duck to record a 50-point campaign.

“(Dostál has) been our best player all season long, day in and day out,” Gauthier said. “Unfortunately, with Gibby and the injuries he’s facing, Dosty’s had to step up and play a lot and every single night he's been in for us. He's done one heck of a job. Anytime we make a mistake, we're super happy and super fortunate he's on our side.”

With the injuries to McDavid and Draistail and the Oilers up against the salary cap unable to call up reinforcements, Edmonton played shorthanded with just 11 forwards and six defensemen.

Former Duck Adam Henrique put Edmonton ahead in the first with a deflection off his toe of a Jake Walman shot, and Jeff Skinner deflected an Evan Bouchard shot with the extra attacker late. Oliver Rodrigue made 18 saves in his NHL debut.

The Oilers–who had scored on five of six power plays this season against the Ducks with McDavid and Draisaitl–were scoreless on six power play attempts with eight shots.

“I think the most important was our PK today, to be honest,” Dostál said. “That's huge for us. I feel like our PK has been doing much better lately.”

Anaheim (34-35-8, 76 points) are back to one game below .500 with five games remaining. The Ducks have not been above .500 since March 4.

The Ducks will host Calgary on Wednesday and head up to Los Angeles for the final round of the Freeway Face-Off on Thursday.

Neither team found their groove early, but it was a sloppy defensive sequence from Anaheim that allowed Edmonton in front.

Radko Gudas couldn’t control a back pass in the left circle and whiffed on a clear attempt that former Duck Corey Perry pounced on in the slot. Dostál kept out the initial netmouth scramble, but the puck leaked back to Perry at the left boards.

Perry then fed Jake Walman at the point, and Walman’s point shot nicked off the toe of former Duck Adam Henrique’s skate and found a hole through the slot traffic by Dostál, 1-0, with two minutes left in the opening period.

The Ducks grabbed hold in the second period with a pair of lightning bolts from Cutter Gauthier.

Two minutes in, Evan Bouchard attempted to pitchfork the puck out of the zone from in front of the net, but Leo Carlsson used his body to hold the zone.

Carlsson stepped up, Gauthier sank back into soft ice at the far circle and Carlsson found the ready Gauthier for a one-timer to level the game, 1-1.

“It's a fortunate play, Leo picking off that pass there,” Gauthier said. “He's a great playmaker, so I just try to find an open lane there and a great pass by him, so it's good.”

Five minutes later, Gauthier’s pure speed sent Anaheim ahead.

Taking a Drew Helleson feed in his own zone, Gauthier got his legs moving up the left boards to burn the Oilers and a flat-footed Bouchard in the Edmonton zone. Gauthier cut inside and lifted a backhand over Rodrigue, 2-1.

“Both goals were elite goal-scoring goals,” Cronin said. “The second one, the one-on-one when he blew by the D and was able to hit the brakes and backhand shelf. That's a high-end skill play. You get a window into what (Carlsson and Gauthier) could look like when they mature and they physically develop. The more Cutter gets confident, manipulating defensemen and driving wide, I think you're gonna see his goals and his point totals go up.

Midway through the period, the chippiness and physicality of the game picked up.

The inciting incident was a high hit from Gudas on Perry that sent Perry back to the Edmonton locker room temporarily. From there, the Oilers tried to get their piece of Gudas a handful of times, but no one took the bait.

As the temperature rose, the tension broke at the end of the second period. Ryan Strome was pasted on the boards by Kasperi Kapanen and got tangled to the ground with Bouchard in the corner. After the play ended, Strome took a swing at the passing Kapanen. 

This set off a full line scrum along the wall, which resulted in 22 combined penalty minutes–14 alone to Strome, who earned two minors and a 10-minute misconduct–and gave the Oilers nearly four full minutes of power play time to open the third period, which the Ducks managed to stave off despite seven shots.

Riding the momentum of the penalty kills, Mason McTavish took the roof off Honda Center.

Trevor Zegras and McTavish combined to strip the Oilers at their offensive blue line, and McTavish sprinted off for a breakaway, which he buried with gusto for the two goal lead, 3-1, with 14:27 to play.

Edmonton pulled Rodrigue for the extra attacker with just inside four minutes to play, and it immediately paid dividends, as Jeff Skinner deflected home a Bouchard shot from the point, 3-2.

The Oilers pulled for the extra skater again a minute later, and despite the Oilers ringing another shot off the post, Dostál shut the door for the victory.

Game Notes:

• With Cutter Gauthier’s two goals, Anaheim now has six players with 17 or more goals. That’s the most since the Ducks’ 2006-07 Stanley Cup Championship season.

• Ducks goaltender John Gibson missed his second straight game with a lower-body injury. Gibson was hit into the net late in the second period in the Ducks’ loss in Calgary on Thursday and did not return for the third period. Ville Husso was again called up from AHL San Diego to backup Lukáš Dostál.

• Anaheim defenseman Jacob Trouba also missed a second straight game with a lower-body injury. Trouba has sat in three of the last five games due to lower-body injury. Oliver Kylington was paired in Trouba’ spot next to Olen Zellweger.

• Anaheim forward Jansen Harkins was a healthy scratch for the first time in 20 games since Feb. 23. Brett Leason and Nikita Nesterenko skated on the fourth line with Isac Lundestrom.