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Ducks’ playoff wait continues after OT loss to Canucks

April 13, 2026

Ducks players celebrate a goal by center Leo Carlsson during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Vancouver Canucks, Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)

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Ducks players celebrate a goal by center Leo Carlsson during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Vancouver Canucks, Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)

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The postseason will have to wait.

The Ducks’ first playoff berth in eight years was in sight during Sunday’s home finale as they took on the NHL’s worst team by record, the Vancouver Canucks, which was playing on the tail end of a back-to-back set.

But doing things the easy way has been unbecoming of the Ducks, who fell behind by two goals, circled the wagons to force overtime but then stumbled in the bonus session, 4-3, off Marco Rossi’s OT winner.

They moved into a points tie with the idle Edmonton Oilers for second place in the division and were now just one back of the Pacific-pacing Vegas Golden Knights. All three teams have two games remaining.

Vancouver had won just 11 of 47 games since trading franchise defenseman Quinn Hughes and only seven of its past 40 decisions. But they’ve also won three of four meetings this season and 14 of the last 17 overall against the Ducks.

Cutter Gauthier scored two goals, one on the power play and another right after a Vancouver penalty expired. Leo Carlsson also lit the lamp. Chris Kreider chipped in two assists. Lukáš Dostál had 22 saves. Sunday also marked radio broadcaster Steve Carroll’s final broadcast after five decades behind the mic.

Curtis Douglas, Jake DeBrusk and Brock Boeser each deposited a goal for Vancouver, before DeBrusk and Boeser both assisted on Rossi’s game-decider. Nikita Tolopilo stopped 24 shots.

In overtime, a tentative stretch broke open after a rush up ice by Filip Hronek and then a steal by Drew O’Connor that forced Kreider to take a slashing penalty, setting up a 4-on-3 Ducks disadvantage.

The Ducks were but two seconds from killing a penalty during which Dostál had already made a staggering five saves, but he couldn’t come up with a sixth on Rossi’s blast from the right circle.

The closing stanza brought a rapid exchange of special-teams tallies, as on the same Ducks power play Vancouver notched a shorthanded goal and the Ducks responded by cashing in 38 seconds later. They’d score five-on-five to make it a new contest with 13:04 remaining in regulation.

Troy Terry had not recorded a hit all season but he was credited with two on Sunday. He laid his body on Hronek behind the net, causing the puck to come in front for Kreider. His shot generated a rebound for Carlsson, who patiently waited out Tolopilo to flick a score-leveling backhand for his 29th goal of 2025-26.

Before that, Boeser disrupted an exchange between Carlsson and John Carlson, blowing past the latter for a breakaway that saw him stickhandle until Dostál dropped down, allowing Boeser to roof the puck.

But 5:05 into the frame, Gauthier became the first 40-goal scorer for the Ducks since Corey Perry in 2013-14 off a one-timer from just above the right faceoff dot.

A scoreless second period was carried analytically by the Ducks, in terms of both scoring-chance volume and quality. They nearly netted an equalizer late. Mason McTavish’s downward tip got through Tolopilo’s wickets but careened across the crease and wide. Canucks defenseman Zeev Buium sent a laser through traffic that Dostál ensnared to leave the score at 2-1 through 40 minutes.

In the opening salvo, the Ducks drew first blood but went into the break trailing, also engaging in a pair of fights.

They welcomed back captain Radko Gudas and their leading scorer, Gauthier, both of whom missed the past five games. In the first period, they both did their thing.

It was Gauthier getting the puck gliding with a goal five ticks after the Ducks’ first power play expired, 3:41 after the opening draw. Alex Killorn generated a rebound that Kreider poked from post to post for Gauthier, who has 17 goals in his last 21 appearances, dating back to Jan. 30.

After the 6-foot-9-inch Douglas scored his first NHL goal, cleaning up Aatu Räty’s deft deflection of a point shot at 10:49, Gudas fought Teddy Blueger.

Then, after DeBrusk redirected the puck skyward from the slot for a go-ahead goal, Douglas would exchange blows with Jeffrey Viel. DeBrusk’s goal at 14:37 was his 21st this year, 18 of which have come with the man advantage.

The Ducks will close the year on a two-game road trip that will take them to Minnesota on Tuesday and conclude the season in Nashville on Thursday.

Ducks’ playoff wait continues after OT loss to Canucks Orange County Register

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Ducks’ playoff wait continues after OT loss to Canucks

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