Quack of Dawn: Ducks Morning Report – 01/27

After a day off on Sunday which helped this writer avoid another rainy drive to Orange County, the Ducks were back on the ice for a Monday practice. They’ll fly to The Emerald City shortly ahead of Tuesday’s game against the Seattle Kraken.

It appears that lines will be unchanged for Tuesday’s game, with Olen Zellweger and Ross Johnston continuing to skate as the extras. Sure, don’t change anything while the wins are rolling in, but this would be the third consecutive game that Zellweger has been a healthy scratch. He has been a healthy scratch in eight of the last 15 games. Will be something to query head coach Greg Cronin about at morning skate if these lines hold for Tuesday’s game.

McTavish named Second Star of the Week

Mason McTavish was named the NHL’s Second Star of the Week after a stellar set of games against the Florida Panthers, Pittsburgh Penguins and Nashville Predators.

He scored five goals and came agonizingly close to a hat trick in the games against the Penguins and the Predators. He also has seven points in his last seven games.

“It’s super cool,” McTavish said of receiving the honor, the second Star of the Week recognization of his NHL career. “Credit to my teammates who have all been looking for me recently it feels like—especially lately—trying to get the hat trick. It shows how much they support me and it’s cool to be a part of that.”

McTavish’s recent success has coincided with two wins for the Ducks, a much-needed reprieve after the Ducks had gone 1-4-1 on their six-game road trip and then lost 5-2 to the Panthers at home.

“I think we’re scoring more,” McTavish said. “Just kind of trust in the process. I feel like I’ve said before, I’ve been getting a lot of chances, haven’t really scored. It’s nice to see some go in recently.”

Zegras’ return has reinvigorated the team

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that the recent burst of offense has come just after Trevor Zegras returned from a nearly six-week absence. The creativity he possesses is an element that was sorely missed during his absence.

“He’s not like a fast-paced, hunting player,” Cronin said. “He’s more of a playmaker, so he likes to slow things down. He’s one of the few guys that we have that his IQ is driven in a way that he’s trying to bait people in to create open ice to slip pucks into space that the attackers are coming into.”

A perfect example of this came in the Ducks’ most recent game, where Zegras came down the left wing and dropped a pass back into space for Jacob Trouba to skate into.

Zegras’ impact doesn’t come solely on the ice. His energy and enthusiasm rubs off on his teammates and helps create a positive environment, even when things may not be going so well.

“He’s awesome,” McTavish said. “Kind of keeps the mood light and on the ice, he is a great player and helps our team. We’re lucky to have him back.

“He’s probably my best friend on the team, so it sucked when he was out. I think for everybody, but I feel like maybe especially more for me. I kind of do everything with that guy and it’s really great to have him back.”