Olen Zellweger scored a tying goal late in the third period for the Anaheim Ducks during Game 5 of the Western Conference Second Round against the Vegas Golden Knights, according to a May 13 announcement. Despite his efforts, Anaheim lost 3-2 in overtime at T-Mobile Arena.
Zellweger’s performance comes after he was left out of the lineup for the first nine games of the postseason. His contribution has given him and his team renewed confidence as they prepare for Game 6 in Anaheim on Thursday.
Anaheim coach Joel Quenneville said, “I commend him. It’s a great attribute to show his competitiveness. He stayed with it and was professional for a young kid, knowing that you lose your lifetime dream of not playing in a playoff game.” Quenneville also added, “He bided his time, he worked his tail off getting himself not just conditionally ready for it, but mentally. That was the thing that we were all appreciative of, how he approached it and prepared himself to be a part of it and contribute in a meaningful way. And he did more than we were expecting.”
Zellweger made his National Hockey League playoff debut on Sunday in Game 4 of this best-of-seven series which Vegas now leads three games to two. In that game he recorded an assist and finished plus-two over nearly twelve minutes on ice time as Anaheim won 4-3. In Game 5, Zellweger scored after taking a cross-ice pass from Cutter Gauthier at the top of the left circle with less than four minutes remaining.
Reflecting on his play after Tuesday’s game Zellweger said: “It was just a good offensive-zone shift and a good pass and I had some time to shoot, and it went in… I think we wanted to play both sides of the puck pretty well, and I thought we picked our spots well (to jump into the rush), but it just didn’t pan out.”
Teammate Cutter Gauthier praised Zellweger’s discipline: “He’s been extremely disciplined with how he carries himself on and off the ice this whole season… Kudos to him for having a great mindset these last few months, and obviously it pays off with a big goal.”
Selected by Anaheim as pick number thirty-four overall during round two of their twenty-twenty-one draft class; Zellweger tallied twenty-two points over seventy-six games this season—his third year playing professionally.
Ducks center Mason McTavish summed up team sentiment: “Everybody is so important come playoff time… He’s been out for so long, and to get his chance and score—it’s awesome. I’m so happy for him.”
