Ducks coming off disappointing loss face Seattle in a home-and-home

The Ducks lugged a four-game points streak in tow as they prepared to welcome the Seattle Kraken for the front half of a home-and-home set.

It will begin Monday at Honda Center before migrating northward for its second leg on Wednesday in Seattle. Last season, the teams also faced off twice in three days, with both those games being played in Seattle. The Kraken won both by an aggregate score of 8-2 as part of a four-game season sweep, though neither team ended up qualifying for the postseason.

This year, they’re both at exactly .500, thanks to recent surges –– the Ducks are 4-1-1 in their past six games and the Kraken are 5-2-0 in their last seven –– with designs on pushing upward in the Pacific Division standings.

They’re also both coming off disappointing losses, with the Ducks blowing a two-goal lead to fall 3-2 in overtime to the Buffalo Sabres on Friday and the Kraken coming up with too little, too late in the way of both offense and energy against the Kings on Saturday.

Buffalo was opportunistic, twice dredging up goals from rebounds and scoring another off a turnover. For the Ducks’ part, they missed opportunities to shoot the puck, in some cases from prime scoring areas, once more.

“We’ve still got to shoot the puck more,” Coach Greg Cronin said. “In the first period, I think Leo (Carlsson) had a 2-on-1 and the (defenseman) shaded towards (Alex Killorn), and he still passed. I think (Pavel Mintyukov) had one in the slot and he didn’t shoot it. It’s a strange mentality.”

While Cronin lamented his team’s unwillingness to shoot yet again, former Ducks defenseman Brandon Montour was flummoxed by his Seattle teammates’ lack of pop in a loss to the Kings that he prevented from being a shutout with a goal in the final two minutes of the match.

While Montour liked his squad’s late push, he thought they needed more hunger and consistency alike against the Ducks.

“These games, we’ve got to be up for. Anaheim’s up next, we’ve got to come with desperation and get those points,” Montour said.

Montour had nearly put the Kraken on the board with a booming one-timer and a second-chance effort that pinged the post in a game where his motor, wheels, and open throttle were on full display.

Since his departure via trade in 2019, Montour has established himself firmly in the NHL. After parts of three seasons, including two truncated ones, in Buffalo, Montour moved onto the Florida Panthers. There, he scored a career-high 73 points two seasons ago, when the Panthers’ Cinderella run carried them to the Stanley Cup Final. Last season, they won the Cup in a contract year for Montour, who inked a seven-year, $50 million contract with Seattle as a free agent.

He leads Seattle in defensive scoring and Jared McCann is its pace car when it comes to points. Another top offensive talent, Jordan Eberle, underwent pelvic surgery on Friday and was expected to miss around three months of action. Goalie Joey Daccord ranks in the league’s top 10 for both save percentage and goals-against average.