Perry leads Ducks’ comeback for 3-2, SO win over Panthers

After mustering just 10 goals in their first 10 games, the Anaheim Ducks look to build off a rare offensive outburst when they continue their three-game homestand against the Florida Panthers on Wednesday.

Perry scored his first goal of the season with 5.1 seconds to play, and the Ducks earned a 3-2 shootout win over the Florida Panthers on Wednesday night in front of 15,169 at the Honda Center.

“We’ve still got probably six, eight games before we make a decision, whether the decision is to split, or guy with one guy more, or not”, coach Ken Hitchcock said last week. “There was no doubt in this dressing room that we were going to win”.

The Ducks appeared headed to another painful defeat until Brian Campbell high-sticked Perry with 40 seconds left.

Center Ryan Kesler’s slap shot from the top of the slot was deflected to Perry, who converted near the left-wing post.

Perry dropped to his knees with his arms outstretched in disbelieving celebration, mobbed by his teammates. “He made a few spectacular saves”.

Frederik Andersen stopped 23 shots for Anaheim, denying Jonathan Huberdeau on the decisive shootout try.

Chris Stewart recorded his first points of the season with a goal and two assists for the Ducks, who have netted a league-low 14 goals this season.

Grimaldi opened the scoring by deflecting a shot off Cam Fowler’s skate for his first goal of the season. Grimaldi, recalled from the minors last weekend, had roughly 30 friends and family members in attendance, including his grandparents.

Corey Perry finally got a puck to bounce right onto his stick.

Instead, the major reason for the Panthers losing their third game with a lead after two periods (4-1-2), including Saturday’s 2-1 loss to the Capitals, was their continued penchant for committing ill-timed penalties. After Andersen made a stick save on Bjugstad’s shot from the left circle, the rebound slid to defenseman Erik Gudbranson, who fired a slap shot from the right circle at 17:57 for his first goal.

NOTES: Florida scratched C Connor Brickley, D Steven Kampfer and LW Shawn Thornton.

Milestone alert: Jaromir Jagr, the Panthers’ 43-year-old phenom, went into the game needing three goals to catch Marcel Dionne for fourth place on the NHL’s all-time goals list.

In the third, Stewart had another great chance, this time to tie it, on a power play opportunity when he was robbed by Luongo with 3:41 left.

“I remember when I was a kid, they would have Beanie Babies with (Teemu) Selanne and (Paul) Kariya and they had all kinds of Ducks guys”, the winger said.