ANAHEIM — The medical news seemed to go from bad to worse Sunday for the Ducks, who announced before the game that right wing Jakob Silfverberg had been placed into the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol and that right wing Rickard Rakell’s status was week-to-week after suffering a shoulder injury Thursday.
Trevor Zegras then left the game with a head wound after Montreal’s Cedric Paquette ran him into the glass from behind at 10:17 of the first period. Zegras, a rookie center, rose shakily to his feet and then pressed a towel to his head to stop the blood flow as he departed for the dressing room.
Paquette received a roughing minor, a boarding major and a game misconduct, and could face additional punishment from the NHL. The Ducks scored once, on Vinni Lettieri’s one-timed shot from the right faceoff circle, on the ensuing five-minute power play and took a 2-1 lead by the end of the first period..
Zegras sat out of the remainder of the first period, received an unknown number of stitches to mend the cut and then returned to the bench for the start of the second period. He was back on the ice, skating between wingers Adam Henrique and Sonny Milano, in the opening moments of the period.
Zegras did not record a goal, an assist or a shot on goal in 12:12 of ice time, a season low. He was coming off a game in which he had a goal and played a season-high 20:03 in the Ducks’ 5-4 shootout loss Friday to the Vegas Golden Knights. He’s averaging 17:16 this season.
HENRIQUE SIZZLES
With a power-play goal and an assist on Lettieri’s man-advantage strike in the first period of the Ducks’ 4-2 victory over the Canadiens, Henrique extended his point streak to three games (three goals, two assists). Overall, Henrique has four goals and five assists in 10 games.
Letteri’s goal was his first in six career games with the Ducks. He had two goals in 46 games with the New York Rangers. The Ducks recalled him from their AHL team, the San Diego Gulls, after placing Rakell on injured reserve on Friday. Lettieri didn’t play against the Golden Knights.
Henrique set up Lettieri’s goal with a cross-ice pass from the left faceoff circle to the right circle. Lettieri hammered his shot past Montreal goalie Sam Montembeault and into the back of the net for a 2-1 lead at 12:47 of the first period. Henrique had scored only 3:39 into the game.
FACTS AND FIGURES
Cam Fowler and Kevin Shattenkirk each had two assists. Shattenkirk leads all NHL defensemen with 10 points in 10 games (three goals, seven assists). He had 15 points in 55 games last season (two goals, 13 assists). … Sam Carrick scored his first goal of the season, an empty-net strike, after he was recalled earlier in the day from San Diego. … John Gibson made 16 saves and improved to 3-2-2 with a 2.93 goals-against average and .906 save percentage.