ANAHEIM, Calif. – In their surprising push to the top of the Pacific Division, every game the Anaheim Ducks play against the Vegas Golden Knights carries a heavyweight showdown atmosphere, and in both games between the two this season, the Ducks have earned the edge as the division’s new top dog.

Cutter Gauthier was served up a gift in overtime, as Mitch Marner lost the puck on his stick directly in front of the Vegas net, and Gauthier sent the sold-out Honda Center crowd into a frenzy by burying the game-winner, 4-3, on Saturday night.

“I saw pretty much a pizza right up the middle, and I just tried to turn around and shoot it,” Gauthier said. “Didn’t really know what was going on, but I don’t think the goalie did either, so thankfully that puck went in there.”

Jackson LaCombe and Olen Zellweger erased a two-goal deficit in just 34 seconds in the first period, and Troy Terry tied the game again in the second period. Lukas Dostal made 29 saves in the win.

Anaheim (14-7-1, 29 points) held on to first place in the Pacific Division for the second time in two challenges against Vegas (10-4-7, 27 points) with the first game at T-Mobile Arena two Saturdays ago also a 4-3 overtime win.

Ducks don’t play the Knights again until Feb. 1 at Honda Center.

“It’s kind of interesting that both times we faced each other, first place was on the line,” Quenneville said. “It’s a long season. They’re experienced. They know how to win. So hopefully we can reflect back on these type of moments… I think that’s gonna help us out in the process, and I think we can value the importance of every shift in key games.”

Saturday Night Fever

It has been quite some time since a game of this importance was played in front of as energized and engaged of a sold out crowd at Honda Center, and the Ducks felt the weight of this heavyweight clash instantly.

“As soon as we skated out for the game, I could tell it was gonna be a different kind of atmosphere tonight,” Troy Terry said. “The fans here deserve it. We’ve worked hard to be in these big games, and the crowd was willing us the whole time tonight.”

As the longest-tenured Duck and the last remaining player to be on a playoff roster for Anaheim, Terry would know better than most. The Ducks have not made the playoffs in the last seven seasons and haven’t won a division title since 2017.

“I don’t know if we came out almost too excited to start, and maybe weren’t settled into our game,” Terry said. “We get down two. I think, if we don’t have the crowd, it’s pretty hard to get back in that game. It was just a fun night overall.”

As the Ducks quickly build their way back into being contenders, there have been a series of “benchmark” games, with each successive game becoming the next “most important game of the season.”

However, tonight’s game against Vegas truly felt like a statement of turning the corner. Anaheim went into Vegas and won once, sure, but to come back from down two goals, take the win from the perennially contending Golden Knights again and successfully defend their spot on top of the division, that felt like an entirely different marker altogether.

“I think this next stretch of games is huge for us to prove it wasn’t just a good first quarter of the season and a good start,” Terry said. “This is the team that we want to be moving forward, and Vegas has been sort of the pinnacle of our division for the last few years. So, we felt it was a big game. You could feel it in the crowd. You could see it on their side. It was just a fun game to be a part of.”

Pavel Mintyukov Returns

After three straight healthy scratches in a stretch that included an insider report that he “would like to be moved if he’s not going to play,” Pavel Mintyukov returned to the Ducks line-up on Saturday with plenty of opportunity to make an impact.

“It’s definitely not easy every time you come out of the line-up,” Mintyukov said on Saturday morning. “You just work on your things and try to get back there. I have my things to get better.”

Paired with captain Radko Gudas, the 21-year-old Russian led all Ducks in the first period with 8:01 time-on-ice and paced the team at five-on-five with an 81.54% expected goals share. Mintyukov finished fifth in overall ice time (21:15) and just two seconds off Jacob Trouba with second-most five-on-five ice time (18:55), and the young blueliner was second with a 79.31% expected goals share at five-on-five, despite not being on the ice for an actual goal for or against.

“I thought he was good with the puck,” Joel Quenneville said. “I thought he was handy killing plays. I thought he was quick on the puck. I thought his play selection was good. Gap was way better, and I think that pair played a lot of key minutes.”

Mintyukov had played in every game of the season until Radko Gudas returned from injury on Monday. Ian Moore, who filled in during Gudas’ injury, remained in the line-up with Mintyukov missing the next three games.

The frustration was understandable for Mintyukov, who had dealt with a similar situation that led to a defensive logjam and healthy scratches for him and Olen Zellweger last season. Mintyukov had extra skills and conditioning sessions after each morning skate and practice in the meanwhile before earning the opportunity to return on Saturday.

“He’s kind of quiet. I think everybody’s different in their demeanor, and nobody wants to not play,” Quenneville said of conversations with Mintyukov this week. “I mean, that’s where it’s at, but we try to encourage him, take advantage of days where you’re not playing it. You got to put some work in and keep yourself game ready and watch the game, and try to put yourself in positions that you can see yourself handling different players in the game, in different areas of the game that you can improve upon, and next time you get in there, let it work.”

Mintyukov went to work on Saturday night.

Penalties Problems Persist

Anaheim allowed a power play goal for a third consecutive game on Saturday, as Vegas scored on one of their four power play attempts. The Ducks have allowed power play goals in eight of their last 11 games with 12 power play goals allowed in 42 opportunities.

“We talked about that,” Quenneville said. “That’s the one area where we want to make sure that we don’t want to lose momentum in games by the frequency we’ve taken unnecessary penalties.”

Stick infractions continued to haunt Anaheim. The Ducks are sixth in the league in penalties taken, but amazingly, they still have an even penalty differential with 96 penalties drawn and 96 penalties taken.