The Anaheim Ducks return to the ice on Monday night, looking to rebound as they square off against the New York Rangers.
Ville Husso will get the nod to man the Ducks’ net, as reported by Stephen Whyno and Daily Faceoff. Husso has seen action in two games this season, with one start. He’s 1-0-0 and is currently rocking a .935 save percentage and a 1.58 GAA.
In his lone start in 2026-27, Husso made 27 saves on 29 shots against the Calgary Flames. Husso, however, will face a greater challenge on Monday. The Flames were struggling to put goals up when he faced them, but the Rangers are a bit of a different story.
New York is 11th in goals scored with 28 through 10 games. That said, they are coming off a shutout loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets, and have scored just once in their previous two contests.
It was the second time an opponent shut out the Rangers this season, with the first coming in their season opener to the Boston Bruins. New York rebounded following that matchup, defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-1.
Offensively, the Ducks will face Dylan Garand, as Daily Faceoff and Vincent Mercogliano have confirmed. Garand has played well filling in for the injured Igor Shesterkin, posting a 3-2-1 record, a .927 save percentage, a 1.81 GAA, and a shutout. He could give the Ducks’ scorers a challenge.
Anaheim Ducks Projected Lines And Pairings Against Rangers
Daily Faceoff and Zach Cavanagh have Alex Killorn, Leo Carlsson, and Nikita Klepov taking the first line. Carlsson continues to pace the Ducks in scoring with nine points and two goals through seven matchups.
Mikael Granlund appears to be returning after missing the previous matchup vs. Boston. Before going down with an injury, Granlund was on a tear, scoring at least one point in his first six matchups. He is slated to man the second line with Frank Vatrano and Beckett Sennecke at the wings.
Roger McQueen is slated as the third-line center, with A.J. Greer and Cutter Gauthier taking the wings. Gauthier played the previous game at center in Granlund’s absence, but struggled to win draws. And finally, Tim Washe looks to center Jeff Malott and Judd Caulfield. Washe has been rather productive, with four points and two goals in seven games.
As for the defensive pairings, Jackson LaCombe is projected to line up alongside Noah Warren. LaCombe continues to put together a solid campaign early on, with six points and a goal in seven games. Tyson Hinds and Tristan Luneau look like the middle pair, while Pavel Mintyukov and Nick Jensen are the projected third pair.
Drew Helleson, Sam Colangelo, and Nikita Nesterenko are projected to be scratched. Troy Terry and Ryan Poehling remain out, as is Ian Moore.
Ducks And Rangers Facing Higher-Than-Normal Stakes Early
Both teams are raring to get a win after losing their previous contests. Anaheim is currently in fifth place in the Pacific this season with eight points and is hoping they won’t fall behind what looks like a tough division. They are already eight points behind the division-leading Vegas Golden Knights.
The Rangers find themselves in the opposite situation. They are second in the Metropolitan Division behind the Carolina Hurricanes. For New York, it’s all about keeping up with Carolina, who currently have 15 points compared to the Rangers’ 13.
This is one of those early-season matchups where one team can’t afford to fall much further behind its division leader. As for the other, it’s all about matching them. The puck drops at 7:00 p.m. EDT.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
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