The Penguins fail to stay hot in California, getting outclassed in a 5-1 loss against the Ducks in Anaheim on Thursday.

On the ice, the three Penguins’ beloved veteran, captain Sidney Crosby, star forward Evgeni Malkin and top defenseman Kris Letang, were not wearing helmets during warmups. Team

Mason McTavish and Alex Killorn end their scoring slumps with two goals apiece, John Gibson makes 31 saves and the Ducks snap a four-game losing streak with a 5-1 win.

A strong start became a weak finish, just as a strong effort Monday was washed away in a pond of mistakes and bad plays. The Pittsburgh Penguins (20-22-8) couldn’t find a second goal before bad plays and bad luck found them in a 5-1 loss to the Anaheim Ducks (19-23-6) at the

The Pittsburgh Penguins (20-21-8) again have a chance to get back to hockey .500, but more importantly, stack wins on a pivotal seven-game road trip. Thus far, the Penguins are 2-1-0 in the first three games and inching back into the continually mediocre middle of the Eastern Conference playoff race.

Forward Bryan Rust left the game with a lower-body injury and did not return as Penguins failed to muster any offense

The Pittsburgh Penguins have announced that winger Bryan Rust has left Thursday’s game against the Anaheim Ducks due to a lower-body injury. Rust left the game late in the second period and did not return to the game,

After one of their best efforts of the season in a 5-1 win against the Los Angeles Kings on Monday, the Pittsburgh Penguins will look to continue the momentum on their road trip when they take on the Anaheim Ducks Thursday night.

The Ducks have lost seven of their last eight games, accruing just four of a possible 16 points, while Pittsburgh just hammered the Kings on Monday.

For the upcoming game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday at 10:00 PM ET, we have highlighted the best bets to ponder, along with our picks and predictions, in the article below.

Welcome back to NHL Predictions. Each day, Last Word on Hockey reviews the scheduled games and offers insight and analysis to help predict who will win in head-to-head matchups.