Having picked up just two points out of a possible 10 so far during their longest home stretch this season, the Ducks will look to pick up two more as they conclude their residency against the Detroit Red Wings on Friday night .

Despite their lack of tangible results, the Ducks were satisfied with elements of their game, competitive streaks and their development process.

“Obviously we don’t like the results of the games. We thought we could achieve more victories in this home match,” said captain Radko Gudas. “But I thought we were growing as a group and playing better and better.”

Forward Brock McGinn said he feels the team has made further progress toward building a stronger identity and that its efforts could soon translate into wins, something the Ducks could desperately use as They are currently tied at four for the lowest point total in the NHL. Ironically, another of those four teams is the Nashville Predators, who landed several high-profile free agents that the Ducks had also pursued this offseason.

Ducks coach Greg Cronin was encouraged by the team’s play in the defensive zone, saying they had ironed out some “shaky” areas on their own end. That progress came even as two of the Ducks’ most seasoned veterans, Cam Fowler and Robby Fabbri, landed on injured reserve this week. Center Mason McTavish is also expected to be considered questionable at best for Friday due to an upper-body issue, while Urho Vaakainen’s absence from practice, according to Zach Cavanaugh of the Sporting Tribune, could open the door in Drew Helleson’s first NHL game since June 13, 2023.

Cronin praised the recent play of Brett Leason, who played the first three games at home but has three points in two outings, a victory against Columbus in which he scored a goal and a close defeat against Vegas in which he established two counts.

Cronin said Leason was the first player on the ice to take extra reps in practice while scratched and his outwardly calm demeanor contrasted with his high level of competitiveness. Last season, Cronin described Leason as the type of forward who could potentially anchor a third line. As a center against Columbus and even more so on the wing against Vegas, that’s exactly what Leason did.

“He’s a good player and he’s still a relatively young kid. I think the staff here did a good job getting him off waivers when he was available a few years ago,” Cronin said of the 25-year-old right winger. “Hopefully he can build on that and we can build on him.”

The Ducks’ opponent Friday appears to be in perpetual construction since its quarter-century streak of playoff berths gave way to eight straight campaigns and counting without a single postseason game.