The Anaheim Ducks were victorious on Thursday, but they still haven’t locked up first place in the Pacific Division.
The cause? The Edmonton Oilers beating the San Jose Sharks the same evening, which extends the race to win this division into the final weekend of the regular season.
Corey Perry started the scoring and Rickard Rakell finished it with his 33rd goal of the season. John Gibson stopped all 37 shots he faced, as the Ducks shut out the Chicago Blackhawks 4-0.
The Ducks, who lead the Oilers by four points, close out the regular season on Sunday against the L.A. Kings.
Perhaps the bigger news for them on Thursday, especially given the playoffs are so close, was defenseman Cam Fowler is considered out of their lineup for the next two to six weeks with a sprained knee suffered on a knee-on-knee collision with Mark Giordano on Tuesday.
This game had it’s ugly moments, as well. Ducks forward Nick Ritchie was given a match penalty for punching Blackhawks defenseman Michal Rozsival in the third period, causing a massive melee.
Rozsival reportedly suffered an upper-body injury and is considered day-to-day.
Q said he'll see how Rozsival is doing tomorrow. Andrew Desjardins also suffered a lower-body injury. #Blackhawks
— Tracey Myers (@Tramyers_NHL) April 7, 2017