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    Derek Lee
    Derek Lee
    Nov 6, 2025, 19:03
    Updated at: Nov 7, 2025, 00:54

    The Hockey News' Derek Lee previews the Ducks' matchup against the Dallas Stars.

    DALLAS - The Ducks are embarking on a two-game road trip and looking to extend their winning streak to five games. They are currently tied for first in the Pacific Division with the Vegas Golden Knights.

    Anaheim has been powered by the dynamic duo of Leo Carlsson and Cutter Gauthier, who have 18 and 16 points. Both of them are riding seven-game point streaks, the first pair of teammates to record simultaneous point streaks of at least seven both at the age 21 or younger since Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl in 2016-17.

    Carlsson received a five-minute major and a game misconduct on Tuesday for a hit on the Florida Panthers' Evan Rodrigues during Tuesday’s game, but did not receive any supplementary discipline from the Department of Player Safety.

    Takeaways from the Ducks 7-3 Win over the Panthers Takeaways from the Ducks 7-3 Win over the Panthers Gauthier ignited the offense with a hat trick, powering the Ducks past the Panthers with a dominant offensive performance.

    “It happened pretty fast,” Carlsson said. “I was trying to get the puck from Troy (Terry), and I didn’t have anywhere to go. And (Rodrigues) is shorter than me, so I just go straight into him. It's just unfortunate that he was so low and I'm taller, so just went straight into his head.”

    The Dallas Stars are currently fifth in the league in power play percentage (31.1), powered by the likes of Wyatt Johnston, Mikko Rantanen, Roope Hintz and Jason Robertson. Johnston's four power play goals are tied for fourth in the NHL. The Ducks are middle of the pack in penalty kill percentage (79.5), but have killed 10 of their last 12 penalties.

    “They’re looking to get their power play to get their game offensively, and they’re good at it,” head coach Joel Quenneville said. “The skill level’s high-end. Patience, play recognition, options. I think that (assistant coach Ryan McGill) does a nice job getting the PK ready and on our opponents and what they’re intending to do. It’ll be a good test for us as well, but I think there’s some improvement on our end of it killing-wise. Denying entries, possession, recognizing pressure points. They’re getting better.”

    “You’re just trying to be in position so they can't set up exactly the way they want it,” Carlsson said. “Troy and I like to go on offense (on the PK) too, they have to have to know that. So that gives us a little bit of advantage to it.”

    Mar 18, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Anaheim Ducks center Leo Carlsson (91) celebrates after he scores a goal on a penalty shot against Dallas Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger (not pictured) during the second period at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

    “They’re pretty similar (to the Panthers),” Olen Zellweger said. “Good pace, good forecheck. 
And I think Dallas is pretty good at maintaining possession of the offensive zone. Lots of good forwards, just a good team overall. Different challenges, but similar. We’re gonna have to play really sharp and execute well.”

    Through 12 games, the Ducks lead the league in goals per game with 3.92. They are also top-5 in the league in shots per game with 31.4. Gauthier is currently tied for first in the league with 10 goals and is second in the league in shots with 58.

    “I feel like we're playing exactly the way we want,” Carlsson said. “Sure, sometimes we make unnecessary dangles and stuff on the blue line, but I feel like we play hockey. We know when to put it deep and not. A lot of shots is the key, too.”

    “We always talked last year about increasing our shots, but there’s not really a blueprint to do it,” Zellweger said. “I feel like this year, we're skating well, maybe playing more free. Creating more opportunities to shoot and get scoring chances. I don't think there's one specific thing, it’s just a bunch of different things you’re adding to create more rushes and more o-zone time.”


    Ducks Projected Lines

    Chris Kreider - Leo Carlsson - Troy Terry
    Cutter Gauthier - Mason McTavish - Beckett Sennecke
    Nikita Nesterenko - Ryan Poehling - Alex Killorn
    Ross Johnston - Jansen Harkins - Frank Vatrano

    Jackson LaCombe - Drew Helleson
    Olen Zellweger - Jacob Trouba
    Pavel Mintyukov - Ian Moore

    Lukáš Dostál (projected)

    Stars Projected Lines

    Sam Steel - Wyatt Johnston - Mikko Rantanen
    Jason Robertson - Roope Hintz - Tyler Seguin
    Oskar Bäck - Sam Steel - Mavrik Bourque
    Adam Erne - Radek Faksa - Colin Blackwell

    Esa Lindell - Miro Heiskanen
    Thomas Harley - Ilya Lyubushkin
    Lian Bischel - Alex Petrovic

    Jake Oettinger (confirmed)