Lukas Dostal made 52 saves and stopped Jack Hughes’ penalty shot with just 2.1 seconds remaining, leading the Anaheim Ducks to a 4-3 victory over the New Jersey Devils on Friday night.
Frank Vatrano scored twice, and Adam Henrique added his 18th goal for the Ducks. However, Vatrano’s decision to deliberately knock the net off its moorings during a scramble around Dostal led to a dramatic penalty shot for New Jersey.
Hughes, who scored a goal and had two assists, mishandled the puck during his approach on the penalty shot and failed to capitalize.
“Just not a good play by me,” Hughes admitted.
Dostal’s impressive performance marked the Ducks’ second consecutive win in 2024. According to the NHL, his 52 saves set a record for the most by an Anaheim goalie in a victory and tied for the second-most by any rookie goalie in a win since 1977.
“I just wanted to ensure I filled the space when he went wide,” Dostal said. “It’s always kind of 50-50, but we always practice breakouts and shootouts. I was pretty confident I could stop it.”
Anaheim coach Greg Cronin revealed that Dostal was ill throughout the day and required medication during a break in the second period. Cronin asked Dostal during the second intermission if he could finish the game, and the goalie confidently agreed.
“What a wild way to end a game, but give credit to Dostal,” Cronin said. “He was the best player on the ice and deservedly won the game for us.”
Max Jones had a goal and an assist as the Ducks opened a five-game homestand with their first home win since January.
Timo Meier also scored for the Devils, who are now 1-1-0 on their three-game California road trip. Tyler Toffoli scored his 26th goal of the season with goalie Akira Schmid pulled for an extra attacker with 2:57 to play, but the Devils couldn’t tie it up.
“Tough game,” Hughes said. “We needed that one.”
Nico Daws made 10 saves on 14 shots in the first two periods for the Devils before Schmid replaced him for the third. New Jersey has lost four of six, allowing 24 goals in that span and dropping out of playoff contention.
The Ducks, likely to miss the playoffs for a sixth-ord consecutive season, could see Vatrano and Henrique traded to bolster their rebuilding efforts.
Vatrano scored early in the first period and late in the second, showcasing his form in the best season of his NHL career. The All-Star right wing has been the subject of trade rumors due to his career-best production and reasonable salary through next season.
The Ducks were without cornerstone defenseman Cam Fowler, who was hit in the face by a puck Thursday in San Jose. No. 2 overall pick Leo Carlsson also missed the game with an upper-body injury from the third period in San Jose.
Mason McTavish was sidelined during the game by a lower-body injury. Cronin had no postgame update on McTavish, whose superb pass set up the Ducks’ first goal, Vatrano’s 50th in his 141 games for the Ducks, making him the fifth-fastest player in franchise history to hit the mark.
New Jersey tied it late in the first with Meier’s rebound goal, but Henrique scored against his old team 51 seconds later after forcing a turnover by Luke Hughes.
In the final year of his contract, Henrique has seven goals in 12 career games against the Devils, who drafted him in 2008 and employed him until November 2017.
Jones scored late in the second period, redirecting a puck from Gustav Lindstrom in the slot. Jack Hughes answered with a power-play shot through traffic, scoring in his second straight game, but Terry found Vatrano for his second goal less than two minutes later.
UP NEXT
- Devils: Visit Los Angeles on Sunday.
- Ducks: Host Vancouver on Sunday.
