The Anaheim Ducks lost the services of goaltender Frederik Andersen on a strange play, and Matt Beleskey suffered a "lower-body injury," but the Ducks stared a potential 3-games-to-none deficit in the face and came up winners, defeating the Los Angeles Kings 3-2 Thursday night. A solid relief performance from Jonas Hiller in goal and some smart decisions played big factors in the win, as ESPN's Pierre LeBrun noted:

Ben Lovejoy desperately wanted to dish it off to Andrew Cogliano. But with that passing lane closed, he did about the last thing he ever wanted: He shot the puck. He of nine career regular-season goals whistled it top shelf on Jonathan Quick, no less; a dagger of a goal which stood up as the winner for the Anaheim Ducks on a night that had a little bit of everything.

"Easily No. 1," Lovejoy chuckled when asked where that goal stood in his career. "I don't score many goals. So they're all very, very, very special. But that was the first [fist] pump of my life, the first celebration, I hope I did it right. But it was an emotional goal and a big win for this team."

Knowing that a loss would dig a series hole every team wants to avoid, the Ducks showed a lot of moxie Thursday night in a gritty performance that needed all kinds of contributors.

"We all know being down 3-0 to the Kings wouldn't be a situation nice to be in," captain Ryan Getzlaf said after the Ducks' 3-2 win that cut the Kings' series lead to 2-1. "The guys did a great job responding tonight and getting back to where we need to be."

LeBrun continues, and NHL.com posted both a "recap" video...

And a highlight clip: