ANAHEIM — It has been a hot winter for the Anaheim Ducks in since mid-November and so far in December. The latest two points came as a result of a thrilling four goal, come-from behind finish in Washington. The Ducks’ 6-5 win over last year’s Stanley Cup winners kept their hot streak going.
Down 3-1 after the first period, and 5-1 by the 13:30 mark of the second, the Ducks looked like they were about to be roasted. That’s when the tide turned when Andrew Cogliano and Rickard Rakell closed the period at 5-2.
The momentom continued in the third when Pontus Aberg scored his eighth goal of the season on a powerplay, with Dmitry Orlov serving time for boarding.
Orlov drew another boarding penalty at 8:10 creating a powerplay opportunity for Anaheim to pull closer. Hampus Lindholm converted that opportunity to end the second frame, 5-3, with Anaheim holding the momentum.
In the third period, Aberg, scored his eighth of the season at 7:16, and the ninth of the season with the game winner at 14:55, and with Lindholm scoring at 9:01 them to tie the game.
Recent success has given the Anaheim Ducks a lot of confidence and points starting with November 16th’s 2-1 overtime loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs, worth a point. They earned a single point again the following night against the Colorado Avalanche in the Av’s 4-3 OT win. Wednesday, Nov. 21st, the Ducks won 4-3 against Vancouver.
The Nashville Predators broke the string Nov. 25th defeating the Ducks 5-2, but two nights later, the Ducks were back in the winners circle with a 3-1 win in Tampa Bay, a 3-2 win against the Florida Panthers, Wednesday, 28th, a 2-1 OT win in Carolina Nov. 30th, and Sunday’s 6-5 come-from-behind win over Ovi and the Capitals in Washington.
The hot streak has put the Ducks on top of the Western Division standings with 14 wins, 10 losses, and five OT points for 33 points after 29 games played. A three game home stand begins Wednesday when Anaheim hosts Chicago, Carolina Friday, and New Jersey Sunday.
