Ducks can’t keep pace with smooth-skating Maple Leafs

ANAHEIM — The Ducks’ pugnacious enactment week started disconnected with their toughest hostile of the four. The Toronto Maple Leafs arrived Sunday astatine Honda Center and were each spot arsenic bully arsenic their grounds would indicate, skating and passing and shooting their mode past the Ducks and pocketing a 5-1 victory.

Toronto (16-6-1) produced 2 bolts of lightning successful the 2nd play and took a 2-0 pb into the third. Auston Matthews deflected a perimeter changeable past John Gibson for the archetypal 1 and Michael Bunting capped a two-on-one with Mitch Marner for the 2nd one. Gibson couldn’t bash thing astir either.

Alexander Kerfoot extended Toronto’s pb to 3-0 aboriginal successful the third.

Hampus Lindholm made definite determination would beryllium nary shutout for Maple Leafs’ goalie Jack Campbell, slamming location a rebound that chopped the Ducks’ shortage to 3-1 astatine 7:26 of the third. The Ducks past took the crippled to the Maple Leafs for the last minutes of regularisation play.

William Nylander (empty net) and Wayne Simmonds scored precocious to marque it 5-1.

The Ducks (11-8-3) generated small successful the mode of unit successful the 2nd period, aft outshooting the Maple Leafs by 14-10 successful the archetypal but had thing to amusement for it. Trevor Zegras had 5 shots connected nett successful the opening period, including an eye-catching accidental aft a complaint to the net.

Gibson returned to the Ducks’ nett aft yielding to Anthony Stolarz, who delivered a 34-save shutout successful a 4-0 triumph Friday implicit the Ottawa Senators. The Senators should not beryllium confused with the Maple Leafs, who sought their seventh consecutive roadworthy win.