Game #13: Ducks vs. Sabres Gameday Preview (10/29/26)

Another game couldn't come soon enough for the Ducks, who blew 5-2 and 4-1 leads to the 32nd-overall Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday, eventually falling 6-5 in overtime. What started out as a bright performance gradually morphed into a horror show fit for Universal Studios' Halloween Horror Nights.

“It was a terrible loss,” Ducks head coach Joel Quenneville said. “5-2 and we’re in a pretty good spot—not a pretty good spot, should have had to seal the win. I think we do some things that come back to haunt us after a night like tonight.”

“Didn’t feel good about ourselves last night,” Alex Killorn said after Wednesday’s practice. “Tough sleep and waking up even today, it's tough for us to deal with that, knowing what position we were in. But today's a new day. We’re optimistic. I think we had a really good practice, and things like this happen. 
You’ve just gotta learn from them, make sure they don't happen again.”

The Buffalo Sabres come into town off the back of a 2-0 win over the San Jose Sharks. Backup goaltender Colten Ellis stopped all 23 shots and former Ducks defenseman Olen Zellweger provided the game-winning goal. This will be Zellweger's first time playing at Honda Center since being traded to the Sabres on the morning of the 2026 NHL Entry Draft.

“It's pretty fun to be back here,” Zellweger said. “Just looking forward to playing the game here tonight.”

“(He’s) defending well, really skating well, doing a lot with the puck,” Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff said of Zellweger. “Offensively, we knew what he could do. I think he feels pretty comfortable with the way we’re trying to play and he’s making a lot of good decisions right now.”

Despite losing six of their last seven games after a 4-1-0 start to the season, the Ducks are still within arm's reach of a Wild Card spot. The Pacific Division is also shaping up to be a dogfight behind the Edmonton Oilers and Vegas Golden Knights, so a return to form could even see the Ducks slip into the third divisional seed.

The Sabres are currently three points back of both a Wild Card spot and a divisional playoff spot in the Atlantic Division. Jack Quinn, Owen Power and Tage Thompson have led the way offensively, with all three of them already at the double-digit points mark. Goaltending has been a bit of a question mark as Ukka-Pekka Luukonen has struggled out of the gate. Ellis will retain the net for Thursday’s game.

“We’ve got a team (in Anaheim) that’s 1-5-1 in their last seven,” Ruff said. “Has a 5-2 lead, gave up a couple 6-on-5 goals. I’m pretty sure we’ll see a group that’s pretty determined to make amends for what happened.”

Ducks head coach Joel Quenneville wasn't afraid to throw his lines in a blender as he attempted to find some synergy during their poor road trip, where they lost three out of four games. The lines went through alterations again at Wednesday's practice following their loss to the Canucks.

The expectation is that Frank Vatrano and Nick Jensen will draw in for Nikita Nesterenko and Drew Helleson respectively. Rookie Roger McQueen had two shifts in the second period of Tuesday's game and just one shift in the entire third period, but will remain in the lineup for Thursday's game. He'll center a line with Vatrano and Sam Colangelo.

Pavel Mintyukov, who has missed the last three games due to a lower-body injury and is currently on injured reserve, is not expected to be activated for this game. He skated alongside Helleson at Wednesday's practice.

Sabres forward Konsta Helenius will miss the rest of their road trip after suffering an upper-body injury in Tuesday’s game against the Sharks.

Ducks Projected Lines

Alex Killorn - Leo Carlsson - Judd Caulfield
Jeff Malott - Mikael Granlund - Beckett Sennecke
Cutter Gauthier - Tim Washe - A.J. Greer
Frank Vatrano - Roger McQueen - Sam Colangelo

Jackson LaCombe - Noah Warren
Tyson Hinds - Tristan Luneau
Travis Mitchell - Nick Jensen

Lukáš Dostál (projected)

Sabres Projected Lines

Peyton Krebs - Tage Thompson - Zach Benson
Josh Doan  - Noah Östlund - Jack Quinn
Jason Zucker - Ryan McLeod - Josh Norris
Tyson Kozak - Sam Carrick - Beck Malenstyn

Rasmus Dahlin - Mattias Samuelsson
Olen Zellweger - Owen Power
Dennis Gilbert - Louis Crevier

Colten Ellis (confirmed)