The Anaheim Ducks wrapped up a three-game homestand by hosting the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers on Tuesday, with hopes of extending their three-game winning streak to four. This was the second time the two teams faced each other in a week; the last result was a 3-2 shootout win by Anaheim.

Florida was coming off a 4-3 shootout win over the Dallas Stars on Saturday, arriving in Anaheim on two full days’ rest and hoping to kick off their west coast road trip on a high note.

The Anaheim coaching staff went with the same lineup that earned them their last win against the New Jersey Devils on Sunday.

Anaheim Ducks on the Tip of National Media Tongues

Game #12: Ducks vs. Panthers Gameday Preview (11/04/25)

Lukas Dostal got the start in net for the Ducks and saved 18 of the 21 shots he faced. Dostal stood in the opposite crease as Sergei Bobrovsky, who stopped just 25 of 32.

The Ducks lost Leo Carlsson at the start of the third period when he received an interference major and game misconduct when his shoulder made contact with Evan Rodrigues’ head while the Ducks were on the power play. Nikita Nesterenko filled in admirably in his place for the remainder of the game.

Here are my notes:

The Ducks came out of the gate a bit out of sync, struggling to build plays from their own end against one of the NHL’s top forechecking teams. The game opened up soon after, but favored the Panthers early.

The Ducks made some adjustments, behind some opportunistic goals from Cutter Gauthier, and dialed in a bit of their freewheeling, ultimately dictating pace with a relentless forecheck, clever rush sequences, and elongated time on the cycle.

They rode the emotions of extracurricular skirmishes and capitalized on the open ice created from non-5v5 play.

Cutter Gauthier-This game was all about Gauthier. In less than 15 minutes of TOI, three of his six shots on goal found the back of the net, and he added a primary assist to boot. Two of his goals came on the power play off of right-flank one-timers, a spot he’d played in for his entire pre-NHL career, and he’s now translating those efforts to the NHL, finding and manipulating those open lanes to make himself a passing option, and burying pucks with confidence at will.

“It’s a pretty special night,” Gauthier said after the game. “(They’re) the defending Cup champ, so the most important thing was that we got the job done. So it was super fun.”

Gauthier became the first NHL player 21 or younger to score 10 goals in the first 12 games of a season since Auston Matthews in 2018-19 and now co-leads the NHL in goals. He was drafted to be a goal scorer, acquired by Anaheim to be a goal scorer, and is now scratching the surface of that potential, scoring in a variety of ways, utilizing several of his above-average attributes, and rounding out his “B” game in the process.

Breakouts and Regroups-This was the area where the Ducks struggled most early. It seemed as if they were anticipating the Panthers to deploy an ultra-aggressive forecheck and were taken aback when Florida’s focus was more on eliminating outlets rather than pressuring the puck.

The Ducks adjusted by having forwards support lower and shortening the distance for outlets, leading to cleaner exits and possession through neutral ice.

Rush Defense-Florida exploited the Ducks’ weak side defender in the neutral zone, who was either too stationary or displayed a poor gap, by sending the weak side forward cutting to the middle of the ice on counterattacks for stretch passes, leading to breakaways or semi-breakaways.

This was another area the Ducks cleaned up nicely as the game went on, taking away that option and forcing the puck carrier to make safer reads, after which the Ducks' backcheck or strong defenders sealed on the wall and killed the rush.

Nikita Nesterenko-Nesterenko notched a goal and an assist in this game and is becoming noticeably more comfortable with and without the puck as each game goes on, now 41 games into his NHL career. He’s evolved into a plus forechecker and is taking his time, making NHL reads, and keeping his feet moving with the puck on his stick to optimize rush and cycle chances. He can play all 12 forward positions, and may very well at this rate if head coach Joel Quenneville continues to have lineup spots in need of filling.

“You get more comfortable with every game,” Nesterenko said after the game. “The more puck touches you get, you assess different situations throughout the game. If you’re not throwing it away as much, you’re trying to possess it, that’s the name of the game.”

The Ducks will hit the road for two games against perennial cup contenders: the Dallas Stars on Thursday and the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday, looking to extend their now-four-game winning streak.

Takeaways from the Ducks 4-1 Victory over the Devils

10 Stats from the First 10 Games of the 2025-26 Season for the Anaheim Ducks

As the NHL enters its second month of action this week, there should be plenty of trade talk in your fantasy hockey pools. Here are some players whom you could deal for and trade elsewhere.

TRADE FOR

Andrei Svechnikov, RW, Hurricanes (47% rostered)

Svechnikov got off to a terrible start with no points in his first eight games. He has two goals and an assist in his last four games, as he has moved back to the top line. Svechnikov has yet to pick up a point in eight road games, but he does have two goals and three points in four home contests. Svechnikov has had some very good seasons since entering the league at the tender age of 18. He should be a 55- to 70-point player this season, barring any injuries.

Example of a completed deal from the Yahoo Trade Market: Svechnikov for Mathew Barzal. (Barzal for Svechnikov is a pretty even deal at this stage of their NHL careers.)

Aaron Ekblad, D, Panthers (73% rostered)

Ekblad has a goal and two assists in 13 games this season. He managed 33 points in 56 contests last season and is now averaging 3:17 on the power play. Ekblad is a solid defenseman and should get 35 to 40 points this season, as long as he doesn't suffer a long-term injury or get suspended. The Panthers will be better once they get back Matthew Tkachuk, hopefully in six weeks.

Example of a completed deal from the Yahoo Trade Market: Ekblad for Neal Pionk. (Pionk is an ordinary fantasy defenseman for the Jets. He has only two assists in 13 games this season and has hit the 40-plus mark only once in his nine-year NHL career.)

Sam Montembeault, G, Canadiens (65% rostered)

Montembeault is off to a horrible start with a 3.67 GAA and an awful .839 save percentage heading into action Wednesday. He gave up three goals on the first six shots (though two of the three were scored on a five-versus-three power play for the Flyers) and then was terrific, stopping 35 of 36 shots in a shootout loss. He is still at a 3.67 GAA and improved his save percentage to .855. Montembeault is 3-4-1, and it appears that he has turned the corner and should be a good deal from here on in.

Example of a completed deal from the Yahoo Trade Market: Montembeault, Mathew Barzal, Quinn Hughes and Jet Greaves for Frederik Andersen Alex Lyon, Miro Heiskanen and Trevor Zegras. (I like this trade, as Montembeault and Greaves should give solid goaltending, while Hughes is a top-two defenseman in fantasy.)

TRADE AWAY

Dylan Larkin, C, Red Wings (97% rostered)

Larkin has always been a solid center for the Red Wings. Starting his career as a 19-year-old after being selected 15th overall in 2014, he has had three seasons with 70-plus points and a couple of 69-point seasons, but he has never been as good as this season, scoring eight times while adding 10 assists in only 13 games. That's a 114-point pace if he remains healthy all season. It is highly unlikely he will come close to this pace, and while he could set a career high, it's best to deal him from a position of strength.

Example of a completed deal from the Yahoo Trade Market: Larkin for Auston Matthews. (That's an awful lot to get for Larkin. Matthews has won the Rocket Richard Trophy on three occasions, and though he is off to a slow start — for him — Matthews is still a top-10 talent in the NHL.)

Dawson Mercer, RW, Devils (64% rostered)

Mercer came into the NHL as a 19-year-old and had two good seasons. He has slumped the last two campaigns with only 33 and 36 points, respectively, while playing 82 regular-season games in each campaign. Now, at the age of 24, Mercer is off to a great start with eight goals and six helpers in 13 games, including three power-play goals and two shorthanded. He still sees third-line minutes in five-on-five situations, making it difficult to project Mercer continuing at this scoring pace.

Example of a completed deal from the Yahoo Trade Market: Mercer and Sean Monahan for Jake Guentzel. (Guentzel is a star, and giving up Mercer and Monahan doesn't seem like a lot at this time.)

Matthew Knies, LW, Maple Leafs (94% rostered)

Knies is playing well enough that he should get plenty of consideration for Team USA at the upcoming Olympic Games. He plays alongside Auston Matthews in Toronto, which should help him Olympics-wise, as Matthews will play in the Olympics and the two have plenty of camaraderie. The reason Knies is a good trade candidate is that if he does make the Olympic team, he likely will slump after the event, and if he doesn't make it, chances are that he won't be playing well leading up to the tournament.

Knies is off to an excellent start with four goals and 12 assists in 13 games. After this week, the Maple Leafs will have played 12 of their 16 games at home, which does not bode well for the rest of the season, as he has only two assists in four road games thus far.

Example of a completed deal from the Yahoo Trade Market: Knies and Trevor Zegras for Nazem Kadri, Dylan Guenther and Logan Cooley. (I really like the Utah pair of Guenther and Cooley, and think they will easily outscore Knies and Zegras — never mind that Kadri is also part of the deal.)

LAS VEGAS -- The Golden Knights moved into a first place tie with the Anaheim Ducks in the Pacific Division after Tuesday's 1-0 win over the visiting Detroit Red Wings.

Vegas opened the night in fourth place with 15 points, but along with Anaheim, leapfrogged Edmonton and Seattle to regain the top spot in the Pacific. The Ducks visit Vegas on Saturday.

Ivan Barbashev scored for the Knights while Akira Schmid made 24 saves to earn his second career shutout, his first as a Golden Knight and first since 2023.

Schmid is now 8-1-1 all-time wearing a Vegas sweater.

Though Detroit's John Gibson stopped 33 of the 34 shots he faced, Vegas improved to 24-6 against him since it entered the league.

"It wasn't as pretty offensively," Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said. "Both goaltenders I thought played well. Coaches are generally happy when you pitch a shutout. You have to find a way to win when you don't get very many goals."

KEY MOMENT: With the game dragging through the first period and a half, Barbashev ignited the near-sellout crowd when he knocked down Brandon Saad's spinning backhand at the doorstep and slammed the puck past John Gibson to give Vegas 1-0 and all the momentum it would need.

BARBIE BROUGHT THIS PLACE ALIVE 💈 pic.twitter.com/oYoUimG1vd

— Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) November 5, 2025

KEY STAT: The Knights' struggles with a man advantage continued, as they finished 0 for 1 on the power play. They're now 2 of 20 on the power play since Oct. 20, and since Mark Stone has been out with a wrist injury.

WHAT A KNIGHT: While Barbashev was credited with the game-winner, Schmid was easily the star of the night, particularly with a highlight-reel save in the third period. Detroit's Alex DeBrincat raced down the left side and sent a stinger far side that hit Schmid's glove. Before the puck hit the ice, DeBrincat followed up by tapping the puck right back toward the net, but Schmid's windmill save stymied the effort.

"I just kind of threw my hand in the air, hoping to hit it," Schmid said. "Thank God I did."

pic.twitter.com/RLZo6ay1kl

— NHL (@NHL) November 5, 2025

UP NEXT: Vegas hosts the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday, in the second and final meeting of the season. The Lightning beat the Knights in overtime, 2-1, in Tampa on Oct. 26.

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DENVER — One winning streak down, a new one created.

The Colorado Avalanche bounced back from a 3-2 loss to the San Jose Sharks on Saturday with a 3-2 win of their own on home turf, as they defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning, snapping their five-game winning streak.

Ross Colton makes it 3-1 Avs.

pic.twitter.com/80BQsK1gHc

— Out Fox Sports (@MarkHolder27) November 5, 2025

Colorado survived a shaky start before building a lead and ultimately holding onto it. Victor Olofsson scored twice for the Avalanche and Ross Colton also scored. Nathan MacKinnon extended his home point streak to 32 games with an assist and Scott Wedgewood made 22 saves. 

Nikita Kucherov and Brayden Point scored for Tampa Bay. Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 30 shots in defeat.

The Avalanche opened the game with their third line on the ice, and within the opening moments, Gabe Landeskog unleashed a wrist shot from the left circle that was turned aside by Andrei Vasilevskiy. 

First Period

Just 1:38 into the contest, the Lightning struck first. Cale Makar mishandled the puck behind his own net, and Nikita Kucherov pounced on the miscue, wrapping it around and tucking it past Scott Wedgewood to give Tampa Bay an early 1–0 advantage. 

Roughly six minutes later, tensions boiled over as Landeskog dropped the gloves with defenseman Charles-Édouard D’Astous. The bout was one-sided—Landeskog landed a flurry of short, punishing right hands before finishing D’Astous with a decisive shot that sent him tumbling to the ice. 

Moments after the fight, Pontus Holmberg was sent to the penalty box for interference following a collision with Brock Nelson. Despite Holmberg’s protests, the call stood, handing Colorado their first power play of the evening. However, the Avalanche failed to capitalize, as Vasilevskiy and the Lightning’s penalty killers held firm. 

Tampa Bay’s discipline wavered again with just under six minutes remaining in the frame, as they were assessed a too many men on the ice penalty. This time, Colorado made them pay. Nathan MacKinnon fired a cross-crease pass that deflected off Vasilevskiy’s glove, and Victor Olofsson, stationed in the slot, buried the rebound to knot the score at 1–1. 

Olofsson’s night turned more complicated late in the period when he was called for tripping Kucherov with 2:26 left. That set up a high-stakes clash between one of the league’s most lethal power plays and one of its most disciplined penalty-killing units. Colorado’s PK unit rose to the occasion, stifling Tampa’s attack and even generating some shorthanded pressure. 

There was a tense moment late in the Lightning power play when Devon Toews inadvertently redirected a point shot toward his own goaltender, but Wedgewood reacted brilliantly to smother the puck. The first period came to a close with the score deadlocked at 1–1, both teams trading momentum in a fast-paced, technical opening 20 minutes. 

Second Period 

Just 4:08 into the second period, Victor Olofsson struck again, netting his second goal of the night to put Colorado ahead 2–1. The sequence began with Gabe Landeskog, who slipped a pass from the left circle to Jack Drury in the slot. Drury’s one-timer attempt was mishit, the puck glancing awkwardly off his stick—but the miscue worked in Colorado’s favor. The loose puck rolled perfectly to Olofsson, who ripped a one-timer past Andrei Vasilevskiy, leaving the goaltender with no chance. 

Barely a minute later, the Avalanche extended their lead. Sam Malinski spotted Ross Colton streaking down the left wing and threaded a perfect stretch pass through the neutral zone. Colton drove hard to the net and finished with a slick backhander over Vasilevskiy’s glove, marking his second goal of the season and giving Colorado a 3–1 cushion. 

With just over three minutes remaining in the frame, the Avalanche earned another power play opportunity when Victor Hedman was called for tripping Martin Nečas. The infraction sent Nečas crashing into the net, and Hedman was assessed a two-minute minor. Colorado’s man advantage went to work once again, looking to further widen the gap before intermission. 

 Third Period 

While the Avalanche entered this game tied with the Montreal Canadiens for the best record in the NHL, the Avs have had a tendency to allow teams back in games while they were dictating the pace and controlling, nearly quoted verbatim from Devon Toews’ comments last week, but how did the Avs look entering the third with a 3-1 lead? Let’s take a look.  

The final period kicked off with a penalty when Brock Nelson was busted for high-sticking Erik Cernak. Nelson was also lucky not to get penalized for holding moments before, so either way you slice it, the Avs were probably deserving of going on the penalty kill. 

Colorado killed the penalty, but the Lightning found a way to score anyway when Brayden Point drove the puck into the Avs’ zone and fired a backhander by Wedgewood to make it a one-goal game. 

Tampa's momentum fell just short in a thrilling finish. Despite mounting pressure in the final minutes, the Avalanche managed to stave off the Lightning’s attempts, securing a narrow 3-2 victory. The contest was razor-close down the stretch, but the Avalanche’s defensive resilience ultimately allowed them to break Tampa's five-game winning streak and claim the hard-fought win.

Next Game 

The Avalanche (8-1-5) don’t play again until Saturday when they take on Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers at Rogers Place. Coverage begins at 8 p.m. local time.

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The Florida Panthers kicked off a four-game western swing on Tuesday night in Anaheim.

Much like their previous road trip, this one did not start well for Florida, as they fell behind early and ended up losing big, 7-3 to the Ducks.

It was the Ducks who got on the board first, and it was a rare breakaway against Florida that got the job done.

Leo Carlsson fed a streaking Cutter Gauthier who came in all alone on Sergei Bobrovsky and beat him with a quick wrist shot to give Anaheim a 1-0 lead just 3:09 into the game.

Florida tied things up midway through the period thanks to their veteran superstar Brad Marchand.

After serving a penalty for playing the puck with a broken stick, Marchand popped out of the box and almost immediately was found by Jeff Petry for his own breakaway opportunity.

Marchand corralled the puck, skated into the Ducks’ zone and fired the puck over the glove of Lukas Dostal to even the score midway through the period.

Gauthier scored again late in the frame, this time with Anaheim on the power play, to send the home team into the intermission with the lead.

Another breakaway goal, this time off the stick of Evan Rodrigues, knotted the game at two 5:21 into the second period.

Rodrigues went bar-down over Dostal’s glove after taking a great pass from Mackie Samoskevich to go in alone on the Ducks’ tendy.

The Cats took their first lead of the game about five minutes later, with Florida on the power play after Brad Marchand drew a holding penalty on Alex Killorn.

After Sam Bennett wrapped the puck around the boards behind the Ducks’ net, Rodrigues carried the puck out of the corner and toward the slot, threading a needle with a great feed to Eetu Luostarinen who beat a down and out Dostal to give Florida a 3-2 lead.

Unfortunately for the Panthers, it was a lead that was short lived.

With Anton Lundell in the penalty box for a retaliatory slash after taking an Olen Zellweger elbow to the face, Gauthier one-timed his way to his first career hat trick.

The Ducks scored again less than two minutes later when Nikita Nesterenko popped home a rebound off a Ryan Poehling shot that came off a rebound of a Killorn shot, sending Florida into the third period trailing 4-3.

Rodrigues left the game for a stretch after taking a Leo Carlsson shoulder to the head that resulted in a five-minute major and game misconduct, but Florida was unable to capitalize on the ensuing power play.

Instead, it was Jacob Trouba slamming home a Gauthier rebound to give Anaheim a 5-3 lead with 8:17 to go and then Chris Kreider deflecting a Nesterenko shot to make it 6-3 less than two minutes later that acted as the final nails in the coffin, though a seventh goal less than 90 seconds after that off the stick of Jensen Harkins certainly didn’t help improve the vibes.

On to Los Angeles.

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Photo caption: Oct 28, 2025; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers center Sam Bennett (9) and Anaheim Ducks defenseman Olen Zellweger (51) battle for position in front of goaltender Lukas Dostal (1) during overtime at Amerant Bank Arena. (Jim Rassol-Imagn Images)

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Scoring goals hasn't been an issue for the Detroit Red Wings for the most part this season, but they came up short when they needed to on Tuesday evening in Las Vegas.

They suffered their first shutout loss of the season, a 1-0 final score against the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena. 

Back on home ice Friday night. pic.twitter.com/dIxmcldDZw

— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) November 5, 2025

With the setback, the Red Wings concluded their five-game road trip with a 3-2 record and are now 9-5 through the first 14 games of the centennial campaign. 

The second period goal from Golden Knights forward Ivan Barbashev was the only puck that found the back of the net for the entire game, while goaltender Akira Schmid picked up just the second shutout of his career by denying all 24 shots the Red Wings fired his way. 

Goaltender John Gibson did all that he could for the Red Wings, stopping all but one of the 33 shots he faced. 

Bookmark The Hockey News Detroit Red Wings team site to stay connected to the latest news, game-day coverage, and player features. 

The Red Wings killed off the only penalty they took, but were unsuccessful on both of their own power-play opportunities, including a key chance inside of ten minutes remaining in the game's final frame. 

The Red Wings also had an opportunity to knot the score late in regulation after a would-be second goal by the Golden Knights was called back because the intial play was ruled to be offsides. 

Red Wings' Todd McLellan Delivers Key Update on Patrick Kane’s Potential Return TimelineDetroit Red Wings forward Patrick Kane has been unavailable since Oct. 17 when he was injured against the Tampa Bay Lightning, having now missed eight straight games.

It was also their ninth straight game without forward Patrick Kane, who hasn't played since Oct. 17 against the Tampa Bay Lightning. 

Detroit will return home for a Friday night tilt against the New York Rangers at Little Caesars Arena. 

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