Hockey: Gauthier Scores Hat Trick as Ducks Beat Penguins 5-2

Cutter Gauthier scored three goals and added an assist to lead the Anaheim Ducks to a 5-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday evening at Honda Center. The win marked the fifth straight game for the Ducks, who wore Hometown Remix uniforms inspired by the Mighty Ducks film. Pittsburgh, which defeated the Los Angeles Kings 23 hours earlier, dropped to its ninth loss in its last 12 games.

Gauthier has now scored in six consecutive games, tying Leon Draisaitl of Edmonton and Mark Jankowski of Carolina for the longest active scoring streak in the NHL. He has 13 goals during this run, eight of which came on the power play. His hat trick was his fourth career hat trick and his third in just eight days.

The Ducks took a 1-0 lead in the first period when Mikael Granlund scored on a loose puck following a blocked shot by Gauthier. Granlund, a former Penguin, has recorded a point or more in six straight games. The secondary assist went to Jackson LaCombe, who has an assist in 10 consecutive games, a franchise record shared with Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry.

Laurent Brossoit made 32 saves for the Ducks, improving his record to 4-0-0. He stopped Tommy Novak of Pittsburgh from the low slot in the first period. Novak had scored both of the Penguins' early goals in their previous win against the Kings. Arturs Silovs stopped 20 shots for Pittsburgh.

The Penguins faced three minor penalties in quick succession during the second period, including 1:37 of two-on-four play and 4:23 of total shorthanded time. Evgeni Malkin said the opportunity to play 5-on-3 for more than a minute and a half was a big moment. "If we score, maybe the game changes," Malkin said. "It's a tough loss."

Gauthier scored his first goal of the game at 6:28 in the second period on the power play. He fired a sharp-angle shot through Silovs' five-hole. The Ducks are 18 for 33 on the power play during an eight-game conversion streak. Gauthier said playing with his teammates has become second nature. "Being able to read off one another is second nature to us now," he said.

Gauthier scored his second goal at 9:11 in the second period, receiving a pass from Granlund. He finished with a low shot in tight. Tristan Luneau added the Ducks' fourth goal at 5:12 in the third period with a rising wrist shot on the power play. Luneau has 11 points in his eight-game point streak.

Pittsburgh pulled its goalie with 11:55 left in the game. Kris Letang scored a one-timer through traffic. The Penguins added a sixth goal when Malkin, Sidney Crosby, and Rickard Rakell connected on a play with 6:18 remaining. Gauthier scored an empty-netter with 33.1 seconds left to complete his hat trick. The Ducks have scored five or more goals in their last eight games, the longest such streak in franchise history since the 1988-89 season.

Coach Joel Quenneville praised Gauthier's ability to find open ice. "He's got the magic touch," Quenneville said. "He scores big goals at big times. He's got some deceptiveness with his release. Guys are getting him the puck in some good areas, he finds it in some interesting places. But, yeah, he's hotter than a firecracker."