(Photo credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images)

The Anaheim Ducks have been one of the most pleasant surprises of the 2025-26 NHL season. The rebuilding California squad has spent most of the season in a playoff position and, at times, even held the top spot in the Pacific Division.

They could possibly regain that perch on Friday when they host the Montreal Canadiens.

The Ducks have been rolling since snapping a nine-game losing streak on Jan. 13. They reeled off seven straight wins after that skid and are 13-3-0 in their past 16 games. That has pulled them within one point of the division-leading Vegas Golden Knights with one game in hand. Vegas also plays Friday, hosting the Minnesota Wild.

'I think we're really proud of where we are,' said Ducks forward Mason McTavish. 'I think it's taken a long time to get where we are. ... We just got to keep it going. It's an exciting time to be in this locker room, for sure.'

Anaheim comes off a 5-1 triumph against the New York Islanders on Tuesday. Cutter Gauthier continued his stellar season with a pair of goals in the win. That upped his season total to 31, long past his rookie mark of 20 set last season. He has 55 points in 60 games, 11 more than his total in 82 outings a year ago. He is also one assist away from surpassing last season's total of 24.

'The main thing with my offense is getting pucks to the net and getting opportunities, whether they're going in or, if they're not, hopefully I can create some offense for my linemates,' Gauthier said. 'They've recently been going in, which is nice.'

The 22-year-old, who was traded to Anaheim from the Philadelphia Flyers just over two years ago, leads the team in goals and points.

Montreal, meanwhile, enters the contest looking to get back on track after a 7-5 loss to the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday. Trailing 5-2 early in the third period, the Canadiens scored three times in less than six minutes, including twice in 18 seconds, to tie it. But they took a penalty late in the frame, and the Sharks scored on the power play to regain the lead before sealing it with an empty-net tally in the final seconds.

'It's a fine line between winning and losing in this game,' Montreal coach Martin St. Louis said. '... I feel like we have a collective game to take over games, to dominate games, to come back in games. But sometimes you just shoot yourself in the foot a little too much during the game, and you probably get what you deserve.'

The loss snapped the Canadiens' point streak at seven games, with the team going 5-0-2 in that stretch. They're 1-1-1 since the NHL schedule resumed.

Searching for a spark, St. Louis reunited winger Juraj Slafkovsky with Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield on the top line at Thursday's practice. Slafkovsky has struggled of late, with just two goals in his past 11 games.

'We wanted to start the trip off on a good note (Tuesday), and there are positives we can take from the game,' said forward Josh Anderson. 'At the same time, there are things we need to continue to work on.'

--Field Level Media