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Ducks’ late rally falls 1 second short in loss to Blues

March 8, 2025

Former Ducks defenseman Cam Fowler, now with the St. Louis Blues, gestures to the fans to acknowledge their cheers during the first period of a game between the teams on Friday night at the Honda Center. It was Fowler’s first game back since being traded. (AP Photo/Etienne Laurent)

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ANAHEIM — The Ducks were all smiles before the homecoming game of longtime mainstay Cam Fowler, but at the end of Friday night only he and his new club were grinning at Honda Center.

The St. Louis Blues prevailed, 4-3, despite a feverish push that saw the Ducks score twice late, including in the final minute, and come a fraction of a second from knotting the game at the buzzer.

This was effectively a four-point game in the wild-card race that moved the Blues into a points tie with the Calgary Flames for the final Western Conference postseason berth and dropped the Ducks seven points back of both teams.

Sam Colangelo, Frank Vatrano and Alex Killorn notched a goal apiece. Vatrano tacked on an assist and Terry contributed two primary helpers. Lukáš Dostál stopped 18 of 21 shots in defeat.

Fowler, the Ducks’ all-time leader in games played by a defenseman, picked up two assists for St. Louis. Captain Brayden Schenn had two goals, including an empty-netter that stood as the game-winner. Alexey Toropchenko scored one goal and assisted on another by Zack Bolduc. Jordan Binnington had 20 saves.

“We didn’t handle the puck well tonight. It was an odd game to watch from the bench,” Ducks coach Greg Cronin said. “We weren’t accurate with our passing and we didn’t execute. It was coming in and out, we’d get it and it would go away, so, it was just disappointing.”

The finale was electric, as the Ducks might have sent the game to overtime off Mason McTavish’s pop-in as the horn sounded. The goal was waved off initially and that decision was upheld upon video review, leaving the Ducks agonizingly close to a vital point and an opportunity at another.

Schenn’s empty-net marker with 1:47 to play was wedged between Vatrano’s 19th goal of the season with 3:02 remaining in regulation and Killorn’s tally, his 13th of 2024-25, with 43 seconds left.

Terry was the architect of both goals, lofting a pass for Killorn in tight and making a brilliant play where he drove hard from the left-wing wall to the inner slot, drawing a crowd of four Blues defenders before his drop pass against the grain created Vatrano’s authoritative shot.

“I don’t think we got our legs moving until the end of the game. We’ve gotta figure out a way to come out with that same energy,” Jackson LaCombe said.

The Ducks completed an ignominious trifecta of unforced errors early in the third period. Having already allowed a soft goal and one off a turnover, they could add a porous defensive play to the list at 5:21. Fowler feathered a lead pass for Bolduc, who had gained speed in the neutral zone and effortlessly split two Ducks defenders, Jacob Trouba and Pavel Mintyukov, to dart in on goal and bank the puck off Dostál and into the net.

After drawing two penalties in the first period and converting on one power play in the first period, the Ducks earned the only two man-advantage opportunities of the second period. It was St. Louis, however, that held a 2-1 edge through 40 minutes.

LaCombe’s pass for his partner eluded Radko Gudas’ stick, setting up a dangerous three-on-two chance that turned lethal when Jordan Kyrou dished to Dylan Holloway, who found Schenn wide open for a rising shot and his 13th goal this season.

“We had full possession, and we lost it, and we were all heading out for a breakout, thinking it was a clean exit,” Cronin said. “Three seconds later, it’s in the back of our net. It was that type of night, it was just strange, a lot of weird bounces [that didn’t go our way].”

Out of the starting blocks, St. Louis had a faster start in terms of pace, shots, and the game’s first goal, but the Ducks picked up both steam and an equalizer as the period progressed.

They drew even with a power-play goal, 14:48 after the opening faceoff. LaCombe’s point shot glanced off Colangelo to keep both players hot. LaCombe has 10 points in his past eight outings and Colangelo extended his goal-scoring streak to three games. All three goals were deflections.

“I’m a pretty big guy. I just try to get to the front of the net and find ways to score. I think I have a pretty good shot, but if I can find any way to score, I’ll take it in this league,” Colangelo said.

The Blues had come out with greater gusto, punctuated by Toropchenko’s goal a mere 2:37 into the game. His ostensibly innocuous shot from well above the left circle clipped Dostál and then slipped through him to open the scoring.

“They took a 50-foot wrist shot, I think (Dostál) just missed it, it was an odd play,” Cronin said.

Fowler, who was honored privately before the game as well as with a lengthy video tribute during the first period, assisted on Toropchenko’s goal, giving him 21 points in 34 games since the trade. Even former Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf made a visit to the arena for the occasion.

“A lot of emotion, obviously. I just wanted to make sure I embraced everything, just took it all in as best as I could but I appreciate all the support that everyone gave me,” Fowler said.

Ducks’ late rally falls 1 second short in loss to Blues Orange County Register

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Ducks’ late rally falls 1 second short in loss to Blues

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