ANAHEIM — Team Overtime was at it again.
The Ducks reached into their bag of tricks in the extra session and emerged with another overtime win, a 3-2 victory over the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday night at Honda Center. For those keeping track, they are 3-0 in overtime this season.
“There’s no quit in this locker room,” Ducks rookie forward Mason McTavish said. “Just sticking with it. That’s the biggest thing – with everything. In hockey, it’s massive. It’s not always going to go your way.”
The Red Wings were dominant – in terms of possession – until they weren’t. Detroit had the first five shots on goal in overtime, and the Ducks didn’t record their first shot until 3:36 and scored on their second, by Ryan Strome, with less than 50 seconds remaining.
Ducks fly together (in OT) pic.twitter.com/BwvQdDkpVR
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) November 16, 2022
There’s no secret recipe for the Ducks’ overtime success. It starts with goaltender John Gibson and extends to the skill of Troy Terry, Trevor Zegras and Co.
“We’ve got great goaltending and we have some dynamic players at 3 on 3,” Ducks coach Dallas Eakins said. “It’s as simple as that. We spent a little more time this year during training camp, well, actually backing it up to going into the summer. Looking at things that we saw consistently in other teams’ games 3 on 3.
“In the end, you need skilled players who can make plays, who can expose the other team, and you need really good, good goaltending and we’ve been fortunate enough in overtime to have had both.”
Their restructured power play produced a first-period goal by McTavish – the Ducks’ first on the man advantage since Nov. 3 at Vancouver – and generated far better looks 5 on 4.
“What we were looking for early is Z (Zegras), his strength has always been over on that other side,” Eakins said. “So we were going to try that, stick with that.
“…I think we’ve shown a lot of patience. But then it gets to a point where we’re going to change it and obviously the changes worked out well tonight.”
They are still in search of their first win in regulation. But the Ducks (5-10-1) have yet to do anything the easy way. “Hopefully soon,” McTavish said.
Teemu tribute
Hockey Hall of Famer and Ducks icon Teemu Selanne has been a busy man. He and his wife, Sirpa, and daughter, Veera, were in the Boston area last week to see Leevi Selanne, who is playing hockey for Curry College. Leevi is the youngest of Selanne’s three boys.
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Next was the Hockey Hall of Fame weekend in Toronto for the family – the induction ceremony was Monday – and then they were headed to Winnipeg, where it all started for Selanne in the NHL in 1992.
Selanne and an early mentor, Teppo Numminen, are to be inducted into the Winnipeg Jets Hall of Fame in a ceremony before the Ducks and Jets play Thursday in Winnipeg. After that, the Ducks travel to St. Louis for games against the Blues on Saturday and Monday.
Ducks at Winnipeg
When: 5 p.m. Thursday
Where: Canada Life Centre, Winnipeg
TV: Bally Sports West