CALGARY — Ryan Poehling snapped a third-period tie with a short-handed finish, then left the ice after crashing heavily into the net, as the Anaheim Ducks beat the Calgary Flames 4-2 at Scotiabank Saddledome on Saturday.
Poehling swings the game on the penalty kill
The Ducks forward slipped his shot beneath Dustin Wolf at 5:35 of the third period to put Anaheim ahead 3-2. Poehling collided with the net after scoring and remained down before being assisted to the dressing room.
Anaheim added insurance when Nikita Nesterenko cleaned up a crease scramble at 17:03, pushing the puck past Wolf for the final margin.
- Poehling finished with a goal and an assist.
- Jackson LaCombe, Frank Vatrano and Nesterenko also scored for Anaheim.
- Ville Husso stopped 27 shots in his first start of the season.
- The Ducks moved to 4-1-0 and collected their second straight win.
First-period trading leaves teams even
LaCombe opened the scoring on Anaheim’s power play at 10:02 of the first. Judd Caulfield missed on a Leo Carlsson pass, but the puck settled for LaCombe, who beat Wolf high on the blocker side.
Calgary answered at 15:03. Matt Coronato found Morgan Frost coming behind LaCombe, and Frost tucked a shot past Husso’s right pad and inside the far post for his second goal of the season.
The Ducks reclaimed the lead late in the period. Poehling got a piece of Noah Warren’s shot from the point, and the puck deflected in off Vatrano, who was battling Flames defenseman Jake Middleton at the top of the crease. The goal came at 19:15 and made it 2-1.
Calgary’s review reversal, then Suniev’s first
The Flames appeared to draw even at 11:27 of the second when defenseman Yan Kuznetsov scored, but Anaheim challenged the entry. Video review ruled Joel Farabee offside, wiping out the goal.
Calgary did get its equalizer later in the frame. Coronato worked from behind the Anaheim net and fed Aydar Suniev, who squeezed a sharp-angle shot past Husso on the short side at 17:54. It was Suniev’s first NHL goal and left the game tied 2-2 heading into the third.
- Coronato recorded two assists for Calgary.
- Wolf made 24 saves.
- The Flames fell to 0-5-0, remaining the NHL’s only club without a point this season.
- Cutter Gauthier played five shifts in the opening period for Anaheim before leaving with an upper-body injury and not returning.
LaCombe and Granlund keep opening-week rolls going
LaCombe’s power-play goal extended his season-opening point streak to five games. He has one goal and four assists during that stretch.
Mikael Granlund had an assist and also reached five straight games with a point. Granlund’s run includes two goals and four assists for six points.
