Golden Knights and Ducks square off in battle of top Pacific teams

Anaheim Ducks (17-9-7, second in the Pacific) vs. Vegas Golden Knights (21-12-0, first in the Pacific)

Paradise, Nevada; Friday, 3 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: The two best teams in the Pacific meet when the Vegas Golden Knights take on the Anaheim Ducks.

The Golden Knights are 6-4-0 against opponents in the Pacific. Vegas is fourth in the NHL averaging 3.6 goals per game, led by Jonathan Marchessault with 16.

The Ducks are 7-1-3 against opponents in the Pacific. Anaheim is ninth in the Western Conference with 31.7 shots per game and is averaging 3.2 goals.

In their last meeting on Dec. 1, Anaheim won 6-5.

TOP PERFORMERS: Marchessault leads the Golden Knights with 16 goals and has 24 points. Mark Stone has five goals and seven assists over the last 10 games for Vegas.

Ryan Getzlaf leads the Ducks with 20 total assists and has 21 points. Trevor Zegras has two goals and nine assists over the last 10 games for Anaheim.

LAST 10 GAMES: Golden Knights: 8-2-0, averaging four goals, 7.2 assists, 3.4 penalties and 8.7 penalty minutes while giving up three goals per game with an .883 save percentage.

Ducks: 5-1-4, averaging 2.8 goals, 4.5 assists, 2.8 penalties and 6.5 penalty minutes while giving up 2.4 goals per game with a .920 save percentage.

INJURIES: Golden Knights: Brett Howden: out (health protocols), Max Pacioretty: day to day (undisclosed), Robin Lehner: day to day (lower body), Alex Pietrangelo: out (health protocols), Mark Stone: day to day (undisclosed), Evgenii Dadonov: out (health protocols).

Ducks: Josh Mahura: out (upper-body), Trevor Zegras: out (health protocols), Sam Steel: out (health protocols), Adam Henrique: out (lower body).

------

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.