In a game filled with drama, the captain returned, a core piece got demoted, but the Ducks secured a win

The Anaheim Ducks defeated the Utah Mammoth by a final score of 3-2, snapping a three-game losing streak. The Mammoth stifled the Ducks in the neutral zone all night, killed any transition plays, and forced the Ducks to pivot to a Greg Cronin special, dump and chase. The game dragged through the first two periods because of Utah's execution of their defensive strategy. However, the excitement ramped up in the third period when the Ducks turned the tables late, which culminated in a spectacular play to help secure the two points.

Down, but not out

Very late in the third period, the Ducks were down 2-1 to the Mammoth. With Lukas Dostal pulled for the extra attacker, Troy Terry jammed home a loose puck off of a Chris Kreider shot, that Karel Vejmelka could not cover, which sent the game to overtime.

The Mammoth controlled most of the play during the overtime session. However, the Ducks countered on their lone possession in extra time and capitalized on the opportunity.

Vejmelka was riding the slip and slide, when Beckett Sennecke hit Owen Zellweger with a pass, for the easy overtime winner. In the first game of a long home stand, the Ducks secured a win, but not every player should be content with their performance.

Mason McTavish disappointed, again

A troubling trend over the past week that spilled over into this game, has been in the inability of McTavish to generate offense. Down 2-1 going into the third period and desperate for an offensive spark, Ducks Head Coach Joel Quenneville made the decision to demote McTavish from the second line, down to the fourth line. Jansen Harkins took over as the second line pivot.

McTavish ended the night with an expected goals percentage of 4.8. Conversely, his normal linemates of Cutter Gauthier and Beckett Sennecke had expected goals percentages of 71.5 and 58.2, respectively. While McTavish did not accrue a penalty, for once, his dismal play was noticeable again. Be it an undisclosed injury or just pure rotten shooting luck, McTavish was the recipient of a large extension during the offseason, but his play of late has not lived up to the cost.

The captain returned

Radko Gudas returned to the Ducks lineup, after missing the previous 11 games with an injury. The captain's return meant Pavel Mintyukov was sent to the press box though, leaving Ian Moore as Gudas' partner on the third defensive pairing. Which meant two right-handed defensemen were playing on the same pairing, with Moore playing on his off wing.

Gudas was solid in his return, taking his patented slap shots from the point, with only one attempt making it on net though. He did post a 55.8 expected goals percentage in 12:52 of ice time, with no giveaways and was credited with four hits. Steady work for the captain.

The Boston Bruins are up next. Let's see if McTavish can finally have a return to form and help the Ducks secure another win on home ice.