LOS ANGELES (AP) — Rookie Beckett Sennecke had two assists and then scored in the shootout, sending the Anaheim Ducks to a 3-2 victory over the Los Angeles Kings on Friday night.
Mason McTavish ended it with a third-round shootout goal for the Ducks, who rallied from an early two-goal deficit for their second straight victory after a nine-game skid.
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Tim Washe scored his first NHL goal and Ryan Strome got his first goal in a month for the Ducks when Southern California’s two NHL teams opened a back-to-back, home-and-home chapter of the Freeway Faceoff rivalry by going to their second shootout of the season. Lukas Dostal made 26 saves.
Joel Armia had a goal and an assist in his return from a five-game injury absence for the Kings, who have lost five of six.
Darcy Kuemper stopped 26 shots, but the Canadian Olympian couldn’t stop the famously deliberate shootout style of McTavish, one of the NHL’s most successful shootout scorers.
Quinton Byfield put the Kings ahead on their first shot on goal 98 seconds after the opening faceoff, beating Dostal for his ninth goal off a rush set up by Armia.
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Neither team mounted a consistent offensive attack for two periods, but Armia made it 2-0 for the Kings midway through the second with a one-timer off a backhand pass from Andre Lee.
Strome answered 39 seconds later, putting a shot past a screen from Sennecke for his second goal in 22 games.
Less than three minutes after that, Washe alertly located a rebound off the boards and beat Kuemper from a sharp angle for his inaugural goal in his sixth NHL game. The 24-year-old undrafted forward won an NCAA title last spring with Western Michigan.
The Ducks played without their top two scorers due to injury. Leo Carlsson had treatment earlier in the day on a thigh injury that could endanger his participation in the Olympics, while Troy Terry (upper body) went on injured reserve before missing his fourth straight game.
Up next
A rematch in Anaheim on Saturday night.
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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL
