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Cutter Gauthier scored a hat trick for the second consecutive game as the Anaheim Ducks defeated the Vancouver Canucks 5-4 on Tuesday night. The victory moved Anaheim to 7-7-1 on the season, while Vancouver dropped to a struggling 3-13-1 record.
Gauthier Makes Ducks History
Gauthier became the first player in Ducks history to score three goals in back-to-back games. He also recorded a hat trick in Anaheim’s 6-3 win over the Ottawa Senators on Sunday. The 22-year-old American now has eight goals over his last three games after going nine straight games without scoring.
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Gauthier’s first goal came on a power play at 17:07 of the first period. He added his second on another man-advantage opportunity late in the second, then completed the hat trick at even strength just over four minutes into the third. He leads the league with eight power-play goals this season.
Mikael Granlund also contributed strongly, finishing with a goal and two assists. Leo Carlsson added a short-handed goal — his fifth of the season — and Beckett Sennecke recorded four assists. In net, Laurent Brossoit stopped 19 of 23 shots for Anaheim.
Canucks Rally Falls Short
Vancouver trailed 5-2 entering the third period. The Canucks faced a similar deficit on October 27, when they rallied to beat the Ducks 6-5 in overtime. However, they could not repeat that comeback on Tuesday.
Jake DeBrusk scored twice for Vancouver, while Liam Ohgren and Linus Karlsson each added a goal. Star centre Elias Pettersson contributed two assists. Goalie Kevin Lankinen made 17 saves in his first start since October 22.
DeBrusk cut the deficit to 5-4 with just over 10 minutes remaining. Vancouver pulled Lankinen with 1:43 left in regulation, but Brossoit held firm and the Canucks could not find the equalizer.
Power Play Dominates for Anaheim
Anaheim’s power play was a decisive factor throughout the game. The Ducks entered Tuesday with the league’s second-best power-play percentage at 34 percent, behind only the Utah Mammoth at 34.6 percent. They converted all three of their power-play opportunities against Vancouver.
Over their last three games, Anaheim has scored 10 power-play goals on just 12 chances. A key moment came late in the first period when a Canucks goal was disallowed after Ohgren received a holding penalty. Gauthier scored just eight seconds into the resulting power play.
Takeaways and What’s Next
Vancouver defenceman Tom Willander missed the game after suffering a lower-body injury during the morning skate. Guillaume Brisebois entered the lineup in his place, and Zeev Buium shifted to the right side.
For Anaheim, left-winger Nico Myatovic made his NHL debut on Tuesday. The 21-year-old from Prince George, British Columbia, was called up from the AHL’s San Diego Gulls on Monday and logged 10:34 of ice time in his first appearance.
Both teams return to action on Thursday. The Ducks visit the Edmonton Oilers, while the Canucks travel to face the Winnipeg Jets.
