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Tuesday, October 14, 2025

NHL: Pittsburgh Penguins (2-1-0) vs. Anaheim Ducks (1-1-0)

ODDS: Pittsburgh – 105 Puck Line – 1.5 + 125 Over/Under 6.5

PREVIEW:

Location: Honda Center, 2695 E Katella Ave, Anaheim, CA 92806

Time: 10:30 p.m. ET / 7:30 p.m. PT

Broadcast: ESPN+, SportsNet Pittsburgh, KTTV (Anaheim)

Atmosphere: Ducks’ home opener, with a young roster energized by a new coaching staff under Joel Quenneville

Team Recent Form

Pittsburgh Penguins): Began the season with two wins before a 6-1 loss to the Rangers. Despite the setback, Pittsburgh holds a 51.2% expected goals share and 52.8% scoring chance percentage at 5-on-5, suggesting strong underlying play.

Anaheim Ducks): Dropped their opener to Seattle but bounced back with a 7-6 OT win over San Jose, highlighted by Leo Carlsson’s OT winner and a breakout performance from Cutter Gauthier.

Recent Form (last 3 games):

Penguins: W vs. Columbus, W vs. Ottawa, L vs. NY Rangers

Ducks: L vs. Seattle, W vs. San Jose

Injury Report

Pittsburgh: C Kevin Hayes (upper body, week-to-week), C Rutger McGroarty (upper body, indefinite), D Kris Letang (day-to-day), G Joel Blomqvist (lower body, week-to-week).

Anaheim: C Ryan Strome (day-to-day, lower body).

Key Player Matchups

Top Lines:

Sidney Crosby – Rickard Rakell – Bryan Rust (PIT) vs. Leo Carlsson – Chris Kreider – Alex Killorn (ANA).

Secondary Scoring:

Evgeni Malkin – Anthony Mantha – Justin Brazeau (PIT) vs. Cutter Gauthier – Mason McTavish – Beckett Sennecke (ANA).

Goaltending:

Tristan Jarry (PIT) – expected starter after Arturs Silovs struggled vs. NYR.

Lukas Dostal (ANA) – breakout candidate, likely to start after Petr Mrázek’s shaky outing vs. San Jose.

Series History

Penguins have won 8 of their last 11 vs. Anaheim (8-3-0).

Pittsburgh is 15-7-0 in their last 22 vs. Ducks dating back to 2013.

Penguins are 3-1-0 in their last 4 visits to Honda Center.

Betting Trends

Anaheim leads the NHL in shots per game (40) through two contests.

Pittsburgh is 5-1-1 in its last 7 vs. Western Conference opponents.

Ducks games have gone Over in both outings this season.