Ducks defeat the Predators 5-2, capitalizing on turnovers. Johnston shines with a Gordie Howe Hat Trick, showcasing relentless forechecking.
Game two of the Anaheim Ducks’ season-long five-game road trip sent them to Tennessee, where they took on the Nashville Predators on Tuesday night.
The Ducks were coming off a 2-1 OT loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday, a game in which they controlled the possession numbers but were thwarted by timely defensive efforts and spectacular goaltending from Spencer Knight.
The Preds were hoping to get back into the win column in this game after only managing a point in their last three games.
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The Ducks were without the services of leading goal scorer Chris Kreider, who was forced to miss this game due to illness. In his spot, Ducks head coach inserted Cutter Gauthier, reuniting one of the team’s most utilized lines a season ago: Gauthier-Carlsson-Killorn.
Frank Vatrano was bumped up to the second line with Mason McTavish and Beckett Sennecke, while Nikita Nesterenko entered the top nine on the third line with Mikael Granlund and Troy Terry.
The forwards weren’t the only group to experience a shakeup, as the coaching staff went back to six defensemen in this game and swapped Radko Gudas with Drew Helleson from their previous pairs. Helleson would play alongside Jackson LaCombe, while Gudas would serve as Pavel Mintyukov’s partner.
Lukas Dostal got the start for the Ducks for the fifth time in six games to open the 2025-26 season. He saved 26 of the 28 shots he faced.
In the Nashville net stood Juuse Saros, who saved 28 of 33 shots.
Here are my notes from this game:
While the Ducks didn’t control possession or generate as much consistent offensive pressure as they likely would have hoped, as is their intention, they remained relatively clean in their defensive zone systems and utilized their forecheck to create their chances.
Rush Offense-The Predators ran a relatively passive 1-2-2 neutral zone forecheck, which negated a lot of the Ducks’ ability to build speed through the neutral zone and attack off the rush. Instead, they were forced to adapt and chip pucks to corners to pressure Nashville defensemen into turnovers, an area where they were surprisingly effective.
Ross Johnston: F1 Maestro-Johnston spectacularly completed a “Gordie Howe Hat Trick,” and added an extra assist to boot. Seemingly every time a puck was chipped to an offensive corner when Johnston was on the ice, he pressured the retrieving defender, got a stick on an outlet attempt, and finished a check.
He worked hard for his goal and was rewarded for being in the “right place at the right time” following a rebound. His two helpers were direct causes of his impressive night as an F1 forechecker.
Defensive Zone Coverage-The Preds’ two goals came off extended zone time and can be chalked up to lapses concurrent with long shifts for the Ducks’ skaters. Radko Gudas has played nearly mistake-free hockey this season, but he made one on Nashville’s first goal, failing to advance a puck from the halfwall, resulting in a turnover and eventually a goal.
Nashville’s second presented a slightly more concerning aspect of the Ducks’ coverage, which comes when a collapsed zone structure is forced to expand, exposing soft ice in the middle, following a puck finding a streaking attacker on the far side. It may be a nitpick and a rarity, but it may have to be something to live with and adjust to.
Radko Gudas-As mentioned, Gudas has significantly limited his mistakes with and without the puck this season. Breaking out with the puck, he’s making smart short passes to outlets with speed. Defensively, his anticipation and angling skills have impressed, an area where he struggled greatly last season.
Gudas is correctly diagnosing building attacks before killing them along the walls in low danger areas, and he’s cleverly using his stick to bait and disrupt attacks while displaying his trademark hard-nosed brand of hockey.
The Ducks' next stop on this road trip will come on Thursday when they head north to take on the Boston Bruins.