Gauthier Nets a Hat Trick as Brossoit Weathers the Penguins
Pittsburgh fired more pucks, but Anaheim won 5-2. The gap was between the pipes, and in what each team made of its looks.
The Penguins outshot the Ducks 34-25 and took 55.4% of the shot attempts. More shots did not mean better ones, though. Anaheim's chances were worth a little more over the night, so this was closer to an even game than the shot count suggests.
Laurent Brossoit made the difference. He stopped 32 of 34 and finished at +1.97 goals saved above expected, meaning he kept out about two more goals than an average goalie would have facing those shots. At the other end, Arturs Silovs let in four goals on 24 shots.
The Ducks also cashed in. Cutter Gauthier scored a hat trick and added an assist on six shots. Mikael Granlund, on a line with Gauthier and Beckett Sennecke, had a goal and three assists, and also rang one off the crossbar. Defenceman Jackson LaCombe set up three goals in 30:55 of ice time. Each team scored twice on the power play.
For Pittsburgh, Erik Karlsson put eight shots on net and came away with only an assist.
