The Hockey News' Derek Lee previews the Ducks' Black Friday matchup against the Los Angeles Kings.
A matinee matchup is on the table for the first Freeway Faceoff of the season between the Ducks and the Kings. This is the third consecutive season that the Ducks have played the Kings on Black Friday. This Ducks-Kings matchup may have the biggest implications in almost a decade, with both teams battling for first place in the Pacific Division.
The Ducks are coming off a 5-4 loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday, while the Kings are coming off a 2-1 win against the Ottawa Senators on Monday.
"We've just got to go the same way offensively," Ducks defenseman Jackson LaCombe said. "I thought we did a great job moving pucks and shooting a lot. We've just got to clean up the defensive zone and stay more connected."
"We know it's gonna be a hard game," Ducks head coach Joel Quenneville said. "Good hockey team. They check well, sound defensively, play a tight system in their own end. We know that we're gonna have to fight for space."
The Ducks are expected to be without goaltender Lukáš Dostál, who missed Wednesday's game with an upper-body injury. Backup Petr Mrázek started Wednesday's game in Dostál's absence and will likely do the same for Friday's game. Ville Husso was recalled from AHL San Diego on Wednesday in a corresponding move.
Ryan Poehling has missed the last seven games with an upper-body injury, but participated in warmups on Wednesday and could potentially draw into the lineup for Friday's game. Mikael Granlund (lower-body) was placed on injured reserve on Wednesday, retroactive to Nov. 13.
Ducks Projected Lines
Chris Kreider - Leo Carlsson - Troy Terry
Cutter Gauthier - Mason McTavish - Beckett Sennecke
Frank Vatrano - Ryan Strome - Alex Killorn
Ross Johnston - Jansen Harkins - Nikita Nesterenko
Jackson LaCombe - Radko Gudas
Olen Zellweger - Jacob Trouba
Pavel Mintyukov - Drew Helleson
Ville Husso (confirmed)
Kings Projected Lines
Kevin Fiala - Quinton Byfield - Adrian Kempe
Trevor Moore - Anže Kopitar - Andrei Kuzmenko
Joel Armia - Philipp Danault - Alex Laferriere
Jeff Malott - Alex Turcotte - Corey Perry
Mikey Anderson - Brian Dumoulin
Joel Edmundson - Brandt Clarke
Jacob Moverare - Cody Ceci
Darcy Kuemper (confirmed)